Dragon Ball Z 1. Prologue

Well, I'm back to writing again :)  This is the sequel to The Saiyan War.  I've reposted it because it was NC-17, but now it's R-rated, so read it before you read this.  It'll explain a lot of things.

One major thing though is that my last fan fiction I updated quickly, but this one I won't update nearly as fast, 1 reason, school, the dreaded penitentiary kids, teenagers and young adults are sentenced to.

Oh, by the way these people know how to sense people's power levels without using a scouter. Brolly, Gohan, Kakkarot, Vegeta, Videl, Goten, Trunks, Chichi, Bulma, Landyn, Alysa all of the royal guards and Arthain but the latter isn't in this fiction.  I may throw 1 or 2 others in but I that's all I can think of for now.

Also, this was never really addressed in DB DBZ or DBGT, but for the sake of my story saiyans normally live twice as long as humans.  So where the average human lives up to 80-100 years of age, Saiyans live up to 160-200.  How long they live depends on their power level.  The stronger they are, the longer they live, makes sense because power level in my story is actually life force, so the more life force the longer you live.  In case you're wondering, because of Gohan's current strength down at the bottom of the prologue he would live to at least 250 years of age because of 2 factors, he evolved to the first super saiyan stage permanently and because of his power level.  (I don't care WHAT you think of their life spans, this is my story and I decide little things like that.  :p)

Alright, I've decided only to make two stories, not three.  The reason why?  Because I'm gonna combine the second and third into one.  I really can't figure out any way to make a story involving JUST Brolly last a long time, so I'm putting in two big villains, Brolly and a REALLY big one which I've given hints about and will continue to give hints and clues about until the time he/she/it appears.

**Prologue**

Three years after the end of the Saiyan war and peace had finally settled down placidly on the north quadrant.  The saiyans on planet Vegeta have finally gotten used to the peace and get rid of their pent up frustration, anger and need to fight by sparring almost daily with friends, family and enemies alike.  The saiyan population had expanded during the three years of peace.  They no longer resided exclusively only upon their home planet, but also on the moon in orbit around their planet and on planet Thraknor, the home world of the conquered rebel saiyans.

Gohan and Videl lived happily in their house as they raised Pan, who was now three years old.  Vegeta wasn't comfortable with having someone stronger then him in his personal guard so he promoted Gohan and made him a General during war and his advisor during times of peace because of his strength and knowledge.  Chichi had made Gohan study subjects like fighting, war, languages and other subjects in those areas when he was younger.  Gohan fully mastered both stages of his super saiyan transformations, super saiyan 1 and ultra.  His hair was yellow at all times, having actually forgotten how to power out, and despite being in his super saiyan state he was still able to hide his energy level completely, both from scouters and the ki sensing technique he had developed.  Gohan trained constantly during the three years, as he knew this peace would not last forever.  Videl trained and pushed to become as strong as Gohan, although she never came close to his strength, she became one of the strongest non-super saiyans, behind only Landyn, commander of the royal guard.

Kakkarot left the royal guard and settled down.  He spent most of his time with Goten and Chichi, except for when he was off training and sparring with Gohan or Vegeta.  Chichi didn't train much, but she did discover and became efficient in wielding two ki pans at the same time, much to the dismay of every saiyan alive.  Chichi was constantly swarmed by other females as they tried to pry her secret out of her.

Goten and Trunks grew closer together with each passing year and were rarely seen far from each other.  They did everything together, trained, played, studied, and even ate together. (NO they are NOT homosexuals, just VERY good friends, sheesh, they'll get their girl friends in due time, when they become of age, you just wait, damn pigs :))

Peace reigned supreme throughout the quadrant, much to the relief of many of the species.  But that peace was soon to be shattered…

Little note, didn't do this for my last story, but here are the starting power levels.  In this story and the next (If I make it and I think I might cause it's gonna be my fav) I'll have in the prologue and epilogue the starting and final power levels of the main saiyans in the story, I won't reveal Brolly's power level until the end.

Ultra Super Saiyan Gohan – 15,000,000    (Age 22)

Super Saiyan Gohan – 10,000,000

Super Saiyan Vegeta – 9,000,000              (Age 45)

Normal Vegeta – 2,000,000

Super Saiyan Kakkarot – 8,500,000          (Age 42) (Brolly is the same age as Kakkarot)

Normal Kakkarot – 1,750,000

Landyn – 450,000                                      (Age 35)

Videl – 390,000                                         (Age 22)

Bardock – 350,000                                    (Age 62)

Goten – 150,000                                        (Age 11)

Trunks – 150,000                                       (Age 12)

Alysa – 90,000                                           (Age 25)

Chichi – 50,000                                          (Age 42)

Pan – 5,000 (She's a strong 3 year old. :)   (Age 3)


	2. Chapter 1: The Gathering

Just one little thing before we start, Gohan and Kakkarot's families only wear the saiyan battle suit when they go into battle, and since there hasn't be one for over three years they just wear the clothes like they do in the series (In Gohan's case before he got gay and started wearing those pathetic school clothing, Gohan wears clothing like his father did in the series but a different color.  And yes for the few that care their family insignia is on these clothes as well as the battle armor.)

****

**Chapter 1: The Gathering**

Gohan walked into his house.  It wasn't a large house, but it wasn't too small to be considered cramped.  It consisted of a living room, a kitchen, three bedrooms, a washroom, an office, a small room with a couple of regeneration chambers, and a hallway leading away from the house towards a gravity chamber a hundred feet behind the house.  The living room had a circular rug in the center of the room with a table on it and cushioned chairs surrounded it on three sides.  There was a couch laid up against the far wall facing the fourth side of the table.  An adamantite door was set into the far wall, leading into the hallway that connected the house to the gravity chamber.  Another door set in the right wall lead to the kitchen and a stairway to the left headed up to the second floor where the bedrooms were located.  A few paintings hung from the walls, paintings of scenic places on planet Vegeta and other planets.  One picture stood out from the rest, a picture of a super saiyan standing in a fighting pose glaring at something unseen.  The yellow hair flowed down his back and reached his thighs.

Gohan shivered a little as he glanced up at that picture. _That picture always unnerves me.  I don't even know why I kept it, I feel almost as if I'm being watched every time I enter this room. Gohan thought as continued on through the room and into the kitchen.  _

The kitchen had a large rectangular table in the center of it and counters lining all the walls.  Cupboards were filled with dishes and utensils and the fridges held many capsules filled with food.  Videl sat in one of the chairs smiling over at Pan as Gohan walked into the room.

Gohan walked over and sat down, "Hi Videl, this looks great." Gohan said as he looked at all the food that Videl had prepared for lunch.  Videl looked over at Gohan and smiled.

"Thanks, I'm cooking for four now." She said as she looked down at her stomach where a small bulge could be seen. She looked up and, after seeing Gohan and Pan drooling at all the food said, "Eat up."

The three saiyans dug into their food and began to devour it at an, what to any other species would be alarming, unhurried pace.  The food quickly disappeared leaving three very satisfied saiyans at the table.  Videl got up and began to clean the dishes from lunch.

"Mommy, can I go out an play now?" Pan asked as she tugged on Videl's pant leg.  Videl looked down at Pan and nodded and before she could look back up Pan was out of the house and running towards the glade.

"Need any help Videl?" Gohan asked when he got up from the table.

"No, I'm fine, go ahead and head and train"  Videl said, not bothering to look over at Gohan, absorbed in getting the dishes done as quickly as possible so she could relax.

"Alright, see you later tonight."  Gohan said and walked back into the living room a slight movement caught Gohan's eye and he searched for it, trying to find who it could be.  After sensing nothing Gohan shrugged and opened the adamantium door and walked to the gravity chamber.  When he got there a voice resounded.  

"State name, password and give genetic confirmation." The machine said.

Gohan walked up to the terminal and placed his hand on the scanner. "Name, Gohan, password Videl is my life." Gohan felt a small prick as a needle jammed through each of his fingers.

A few seconds later the voice reappeared, "Name and password confirmed.  Genetic sample accepted, welcome Gohan.  The gravity has been set to twenty times Vegeta's gravity." The voice said before it disappeared.

The large door, the only entrance into the gravity chamber, opened up.  Gohan walked into the doorway and was teleported into the gravity chamber and as soon as he entered the room the lights came on.  The gravity chamber was just a huge spherical chamber suspended in a massive electro magnetic field.  Lights, powered by the magnetic field surrounding the gravity chamber were placed at specific locations around the chamber to provide maximum lighting with the minimum amount of lights.  A single computer terminal floated in the center of the gravity chamber and from here Gohan could control anything and everything within the gravity chamber.  The computer terminal allowed him to life like holograms of anyone he choose to as well as create platforms or a floor wherever he wanted.  He could change the scenery and gravity as well as the temperature, lighting and density of the air, from nothing (vacuum) to density of a solid.  A new feature which was installed recently was the ability to create multiple regeneration chambers.

Gohan floated over to the computer terminal and dimmed the lighting to almost nothing. _Less light means it's harder to see my opponents which means that I have to rely on instinct more then my senses. Gohan thought to himself.  Gohan used the terminal to create a platform five feet wide that circled the computer terminal.  Gohan smiled to himself and set himself on the platform.  "Might as well begin warming up." He said aloud as he got in the push up position._

Gohan's warm-up consisted of 1,000 no hand push ups, using his mind to exert the force needed to make him do the push up in twenty times Vegeta's gravity.  After that he did 4,000 crunches, 1,000 for each part, his lower abdominal muscles, his upper, and his two sides.  Gohan then flew around the gravity chamber 500 times and then settled down to doing stretches on the platform.

After the warm-up Gohan approached the terminal and set it to dim lighting, forest scenery and added two opponents, Kakkarot and Vegeta.  Gohan knew he was pushing his limits, but he didn't mind.  If he never pushed his limits, he would never reach the next level.  Gohan knew there was another level of evolution, there was no way a male saiyan could have hair that naturally went down to their thighs.

Gohan was pulled from his thoughts as a ki blast flew by him.  He jumped back only to get slammed from behind by one of the holograms. _Damn, I shouldn't have been caught off guard, Gohan thought too himself and powered up to his maximum energy level.  When Gohan finished powering up he flew towards Kakkarot and began rapidly firing off punches towards his abdomen, chest and face.  Kakkarot blocked the punches as best he could but they got through despite his best efforts._

Just as Gohan was about to kick him away a blast hit him from behind followed quickly by a massive overhand blow to his back.  Gohan fell and slammed into the floor of the gravity chamber.  Gohan got up and smiled up at the holograms.  Gohan speed up towards Vegeta and rammed his head into the holograms stomach, sending him flying away.  Gohan turned towards Kakkarot and began to, once again, exchange a flurry of blows.  Vegeta quickly recovered from the blow to his stomach and joined in on the hand to hand combat.

Gohan pushed himself harder, and blocked all the blows that were raining down on him.  Although Gohan was currently evenly matched against the other two super saiyans he knew it would not last for long.  The holograms never got tired or run out of energy.  They only stopped attacking after Gohan said end program or when he was unconscious.  They had a serious advantage over Gohan because his energy was limited because of his mortality.

One of Kakkarot's punches slipped through Gohan's defenses and stunned him for a second which caused more punches to slip through and slam into him.  Gohan winced as he flew downwards and slammed into the bottom of the gravity chamber causing it to shift slightly.  Gohan hovers and looks back up at the two super saiyans as they flew towards him.  Gohan raised his hands above his head and shouted "MASENKO-HA!" and fired his energy wave at Kakkarot and Vegeta.

Kakkarot and Vegeta braced themselves as the energy wave slammed into them.  Kakkarot and Vegeta struggled against the energy wave and finally fired their own into Gohan's.

Gohan heard the holograms shout "FINAL FLASH!" and "KA-ME-HA-ME-HA" and strained to pour more energy into his blast.  The combined might of the holograms energy waves began to overcome Gohan's and Gohan panicked slightly when he realized something.  All three blasts where at their maximum, if it collided with the side of the gravity chamber the chamber would detonate.  If the chamber detonated more then likely destroy his home and mate at the same time.

Gohan concentrated and pulled out every scrap of energy inside him and released it as he edged closer to the other two super saiyans.  The other two super saiyans did likewise and soon all three were close to the epicenter of the energy waves.  Gohan's face was set into a snarl and he let out a roar as he fired every last bit of energy he had inside him.  The energy waves, unstable because of the close proximity of the saiyans, detonated and sent Gohan flying towards the south side of the gravity chamber, and through the wall.  Gohan's body flew through the magnetic field suspending the gravity chamber and over the house into the front yard.  Behind him there was a massive explosion inside the gravity chamber a second before it exploded.  A large explosion rips through the magnetic field and destroys the gravity chamber completely.

Gohan slammed into the front yard and made a deep trench as he slide across the grassy yard.  Videl heard the explosion and quickly rushed outside and over to Gohan's side.

"Gohan, not again, this is the third time this month, I do…" Videl stopped as she watched Gohan slip into unconsciousness.  She sighed and picked Gohan up and dragged him into the house and put him into one of the empty regeneration chambers.  "I can't believe this Gohan, oh well, you'll get a tongue lashing when you wake up, for now… just heal."  Videl whispered as she laid her hand on the glass that encapsulated Gohan.

After a minute to make sure everything was progressing smoothly Videl left the room and sent a message to Bulma through her scouter asking for a new gravity chamber.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

An hour later…

Pan hopped into the house and ran around the furniture, "MOMMY, MOMMY!" Pan yelled and Videl quickly entered the room.

"What is it honey?" Videl asked as she went over and picked Pan up.

Pan beamed at Videl and hopped onto her shoulders, "Guess who I brought home with me?"  Pan chirped.

Videl raised an eyebrow up at Pan, "And who did you bring home with you?"  Videl asked and winced slightly as Pan pulled on her hair.

"Me," Kakkarot said as he walked into the house, "How's it going Videl?  We heard an explosion about an hour ago but we just figured it was Gohan breaking the gravity chamber again." He said as he walked over and sat down in one of the couches.

"I'm fine Kakkarot.  Gohan broke the chamber again; Bulma said she'll send some technicians over to fix it soon.  She's just glad he doesn't break it on a daily basis like Vegeta does."  Videl said and pulled Pan off her shoulders and put Pan in her lap as she sat on the couch before she continued, "She rarely sees Vegeta anymore, and he's obsessed with trying to be stronger then Gohan."  Videl finished.

Kakkarot nodded and looked up at the picture and frowned a little, "Has Gohan ever told you why he kept that picture?  It's a little… freaky at how life like it is."  Kakkarot asked.

Videl shook her head, "No, he just says he had this strange feeling, a feeling that something bad is coming, and the picture is connected to it."  Videl said, "I don't really think it fits the décor of the house, but he's adamant with it staying where it is."  Videl finished.

Kakkarot only shook his head at that remake, "Well, anyways, Vegeta asked for us, all of us, to go to the palace tomorrow.  There is going to be a gathering of everyone that had a major involvement in the war.  Tomorrow is the 4th year anniversary of the end of the war."  Kakkarot said and looked towards the regeneration chamber room. "Will Gohan be fine by tomorrow?"  Kakkarot asked and looked back at Videl.

Videl followed his gaze and nodded.  "Yes, he should be.  He seems to be healing faster each time.  The first time he broke the gravity chamber he wasn't as hurt as the last time and it took him two days to recover.  The last time it took him twelve hours."  Videl said as she combed her hands through Pan's hair, "He'll probably wake up in the middle of the night and come to me complaining that he's hungry."  She said with a little smile.

Kakkarot smiled, "That's my son alright" Kakkarot said with pride in his voice.  "Anyways, I have to get home before Chichi takes a fit.  I just came to deliver the news.  Vegeta wants Gohan there more then anyone else except his family.  Vegeta has been desperately trying to naturally stay super saiyan but has yet to manage it and will probably spend most of the day drilling the information out of Gohan"  Kakkarot said with sympathy in his voice as he stood up.

Videl picked Pan up and stood up as well, "Thanks for telling us, we'll be there.  Knowing Vegeta he would make the gathering here if Gohan refused to go and I do NOT want all those rowdy saiyans in my house."  Videl said as she followed Kakkarot to the door.  "Take care Kakkarot, and say hi to Chichi for me."  Videl said.

Kakkarot waved to Videl, "Sure thing, see you later Videl."  Kakkarot said and blasted off towards his house.  Videl waved to Kakkarot as he flew through the air before she headed back inside with Pan.

"Do you want some supper Pan?"  Videl asked, "Daddy won't be joining us, he's in the gooey stuff again."  Videl said and laughed at the look on Pan's face.

"EWWW!  I don't like the gooey stuff.  Poor daddy, let's eat, I'm hungry." Pan said as she hopped out of Videl's arms and raced towards the kitchen.  Videl smiled after her and quickly followed, she was hungry as well, and Gohan… well he would just have to wait until breakfast.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning…

Videl walked downstairs as she hummed a little tune to herself.  Gohan had woken up in the early hours of the morning and, like she knew he would, complained that he was hungry.  Gohan walked downstairs behind Videl holding his stomach and groaned as he stumbled towards the kitchen.  When they arrived in the kitchen Gohan plopped himself down in one of the chairs and leaned back as he held his stomach.  Videl went to the counter and began to prepare breakfast.

"It's going to take me a little while to cook all the food for you Gohan."  Videl said and looked back towards Gohan. "Why don't you go clean up and spend some time with Pan.  Pan rarely gets to see you because you're either in the gravity chamber training or you're in the regeneration chamber."

Gohan looked up at Videl with a strained look on his face.  Gohan slowly got out of the chair and walked upstairs to the washroom and took a shower as he waited for breakfast.  Videl quickly finished breakfast and called Gohan and Pan downstairs to eat once she had finished.  Soon afterwards all the food she had cooked was gone and Pan ran outside to play again while Gohan and Videl went into the living room and sat side by side on the couch.

Videl turned her head and looked at Gohan, "I forgot to tell you, there is a gathering at the palace and Vegeta wants you to be there.  He will probably want to spar with you or try and figure out how you manage to stay as a super saiyan."   Videl said. "I think we should go, I don't want Vegeta moving the gathering here because you don't feel like going.  And besides, the gravity chamber is broken so you will have nothing to occupy yourself."  Videl said.

Gohan sighed, "Alright, we'll go, it might actually be nice for once.  I haven't seen many people since the end of the war."  Gohan said as he turned his head to face Videl.

Videl smiled at Gohan and kissed him on the lips.  "That's good to hear, now you better get ready, the get-together at the palace."  Videl said as she stood up and left to go clean get cleaned up.  Gohan stood and quickly followed Videl.

An hour later Gohan and Videl flew through the sky, with Pan snuggled in Gohan's arms, as they headed towards the palace.  The day was beautiful, open blue sky for as far as the eye could see with a few wisps of clouds here and there.  The sun shown in through the atmosphere and warmed the air sufficiently enough so the air was warm, it was currently summer on this part of the planet.

As they landed in front of the south gate of the capital they were greeted by Kakkarot, Goten and Chichi.  When Pan saw Goten she jumped out of her father's arms and onto Goten's head and began yanking on his hair.  Goten ran around the front of the gate shouting "GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF!" while yelling in mock pain and he flailing his arms about.  Everyone there laughed at the sight, even the guard at the gate broke a smile.

After the incident the guard let them into the city, not asking for identification.  Gohan's muscle mass and yellow hair style was all the identification he needed.  The six of them blasted off towards the palace and the seventh, Pan, was snuggled in Gohan's arms once again.  They quickly reached the palace and when they landed at the main entrance they were quickly ushered into the building and shown to where the gathering was.

When Gohan entered the massive room he noticed that it was actually the throne room, slightly modified.  Tables lay scattered throughout the place filled with every type of food imaginable.  All of Vegeta's allies had representatives in the throne room.  Some of his allies were actually represented by their leader.  Before Gohan was able to take more then a dozen steps into the room Vegeta was at his side.

Vegeta looked over at Gohan, "Follow me.  There are some things we need to talk about in private."  Vegeta said and beckoned for Gohan to follow him as he left through one of the back doors of the throne room.  

Gohan shrugged and followed Vegeta, _You were right Videl.  I seem to be the main reason for Vegeta calling this gathering.  I guess he wanted some justification of calling me here without actually making it seem that he needed me here instead of just wanted me here.  Gohan thought to Videl.  Videl waved to Gohan as he left the throne room, a little smile on her face._

After less then a minute of walking they ended up in front of a large door.  Vegeta pressed his signet ring into one of the holes in the door causing them to silently swing open.  Vegeta walked into the room with Gohan close behind.  Once the two of them had entered the room the door closed behind them and Vegeta walked across the room.  The room itself was rather small.  The walls were lined with book cases and the book cases were filled with books ranging from many different subjects.  The biggest subjects were concentrated on the saiyan history, war strategies, and fighting techniques.  The floor was totally carpeted, unlike most of the palace and in the center of the room was a circular table with chairs around it.  Vegeta walked over to one of the book cases, looked for a bit, and pulled a large tome and headed back to the table.

"Sit."  Vegeta said as he sat down in one of the chairs and opened the book in front of him.  Gohan walked to the table and sat in the chair opposite Vegeta.

"So, what did you want to talk to me about?"  Gohan asked his curiosity piqued.

Vegeta looked up from the book and looked at Gohan, "Do you know what this book is?"  Vegeta asked.  Gohan shook his head no.  "It's one of the saiyan history books.  This is very old, or at least the contents are.  The books here are replaced whenever they start to become frail and crumbly."  Vegeta continued, "It wasn't originally in a book format, the information held in this book was originally just known to the lore masters of the saiyan race before it was set down in writing."  Vegeta said and flipped to one of the pages, "The information in this book is… disturbing.  I didn't bother reading it before but ever since you found a way to permanently stay in your super saiyan state I decided to check if there was any other record of this occurring."  Vegeta paused for a moment as he looked up at Gohan, "If the information in this book is to be believed, apparently it was normal for a saiyan to stay in their super saiyan state.  In fact, it was considered abnormal for them NOT to be in that state."  Vegeta shook his head as he looked back down at the book.  "I won't go into what this book says exactly, but apparently many thousands of years ago, every saiyan had yellow hair.  There was supposedly a cataclysmic event in our past that caused every saiyan to lose their yellow hair and super strength, to de-evolve.  Someone or something de-evolved the saiyan race.  What is also really disturbing is the fact that we didn't originally inhabit planet Vegeta.  We fled from somewhere else and came here afterwards and in the process lost all the technological advancements we originally had.  It has only been in the past 500 years that we have made any major technological advancement."  Vegeta said.

Gohan stared at Vegeta in surprise, _Why is he telling me all this?  This is not what I had expected him to talk to me about… maybe this is just a round about way of getting to his point. Gohan thought._

_What is he telling you?  Videl thought back to Gohan_

_Nothing, I'll tell you later, Gohan thought to Videl, __It is really… surprising information._

"Why are you telling me all of this?"  Gohan asked, thoroughly confused.

"Because you are the first saiyan to stay fully evolve to the next stage of evolution and stay there permanently since we came to this planet."  Vegeta replied. "And it also means that the picture you have on your wall, it means that he isn't the first super saiyan, or maybe it means he actually is and you aren't."  Vegeta said, "The super saiyan in the picture, Arthain has hair down to his thighs, no eye brows, and massive muscle development.  I know for a fact that saiyan hair, at least for males, does not grow that long.  So I think he's hit another stage of evolution."  Vegeta said and looked up at Gohan, "Apparently all you did when you super saiyan was evolve back to the stage all your ancestors were at.  I know this is a round-about way of getting to the point, but I want to know how you learned to stay yellow permanently, not because I want the extra strength all the time, but because I do not like being less then I should be."  Vegeta finished.

Gohan shook his surprise away, "I though this might have been the point of dragging me in here…  Although the information you just told me is quite surprising."  Gohan said. "All I don't really know how I stay in the state permanently.  I just started with staying in it for as long as possible, generally only leaving it when I fall asleep or go unconscious and I meditated a lot to expand my mind.  It just kind of happened over night.  One night I would fall out of this state when I fell asleep, and the next, I didn't."  Gohan said.

Vegeta stared at Gohan for awhile, "So, that's it?  That is ALL it takes to become a super saiyan permanently?"  Vegeta asked.

Gohan nodded and Vegeta sat back and sighed.  "Before you leave here you're going to teach me how you meditate."  Vegeta said.

Gohan stifled a groan and prepared himself for a long teaching session.  _I think I'll be a while Videl, just enjoy yourself and don't wait for me.  Gohan sent through his bond._

_Alright Gohan, take care, Videl sent back._

------------------------------

Back at the gathering…

Alysa approached Videl with a grin on her face, "So Videl, how is Gohan in bed?" Alysa asked.

Videl blushed, "That's none of your business."  Videl said.

"You know, he would have been mine if you hadn't come along."  Alysa said and took a step closer, "Oh well, I got Landyn now, he's probably a lot better in bed then Gohan." Alysa bragged.

Videl smirked at Alysa, "Is that so?  I don't really need to tell you all about our adventures.  I don't really feel the need in telling people that we generally go for hours at a time before we get even the slightest bit exhausted."  Videl said in a light tone as she turned to walk over towards Chichi, leaving a stunned Alysa behind.

When Videl reached Chichi she stopped and brushed a bang from her forehead, "So what are you doing?"  Videl asked.

Chichi just shrugged her shoulders, "I'm keeping an eye on my mate and Goten.  With him being close friends with the prince he may have girls all over him.  While I don't mind more grand children I think he's a little young."  Chichi said, "What did you say to Alysa?  She looks like she got the shock of her life."  Chichi asked.

Videl just smirked, "Oh I didn't say much, I just told her a little about me and Gohan.  She's currently wishing she hadn't given up the chase."  Videl said.

Chichi laughed at this and walked over towards one of the tables laden with food, Videl close behind her.  "Do you know what Vegeta is talking to Gohan about?"  Chichi inquired.

Videl shook her head, "No, he just said it was some really surprising stuff and that he'll be awhile."  Videl said as she grabbed some food and began to eat.

Chichi just nodded, "Well, I think we should enjoy ourselves while we are here."  Chichi said and walked out to mingle in with the crowd.

Videl smiled and was about to join her when Pan jumped into her arms. 

"MOMMY!" Pan yelled excitedly and snuggled against her, "Can we go home now?  This is boring; there isn't anyone or anything to play with."  Pan complained.

Videl looked down at Pan and gave a gentle smile, "We can't go just yet, we'll have to wait for your father.  Although he if takes to long we'll go home without him, is that alright?"  Videl asked.

Pan nodded and burrowed into Videl's arms even more and promptly went to sleep.  Videl walked over to one of the benches on the side of the throne room and sat down with Pan still in her arms. "Oh well, I guess I won't be mingling in with the crowd."  Videl said softly, "I suppose it's for the best, at least I know Pan is safe."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A few hours later…

Gohan walked back into the throne room thoroughly flustered.  _Teaching Vegeta how to meditate was harder then I thought, he refused to relax.  Oh well, he was getting close near the end. Gohan thought to himself.  Gohan looked around the throne room as he searched for Videl.  After several minutes of trying to find her through the crowd of delegates in the central part of the throne room Gohan spotted her sitting on one of the benches at the side of the throne room.  Gohan quickly made his way through the crowd and sat down beside her._

Videl looked over at Gohan and kissed him, _what took you so long Gohan? Videl sent to him through their bond._

_Vegeta demanded that I teach him how to meditate.  I've taught you how, and you know how Vegeta is.  He wouldn't let me go until he got the hang of it.  I was only able to get out just now because I convinced him that he was coming really close and that you were getting ready to leave without me, Gohan sent back._

Videl winced and nodded, A_lright you're forgiven, just don't let it happen again._

"Let's tell my parents that we're leaving and then head home alright?" Gohan asked.

Videl nodded and stood up.  The two of them walked over to where Chichi and Kakkarot were the latter stuffing his face full of food.  "Mother, Father, Videl and I are going to head home now."  Gohan said when the two of them noticed their presence.

Kakkarot only nodded, afraid to speak with his mouth full in front of Chichi.  "Alright dear, take care."  Chichi said.

Gohan and Videl quickly walked through the throne room and proceeded to leave the palace.  On the way home Gohan thought about all the things that Vegeta had told him, the disturbing history of the saiyan race and the fact that he wasn't a super saiyan.  Gohan shook his head in worry.  He seriously didn't want to meet the thing that was powerful enough to win against a race of saiyans where the average person had a strength and speed equal to his own.

To be continued…

Well, there the first chapter of my new story is out.  It'll probably take me a week for each chapter because I have a LOT of things on the go, and I'm not joking, school, PS2, computer, creating a campaign for SC for someone, DnD, and chores.  That leaves maybe an hour each day for this fan fiction, if that.  Well, I'll get the next out as soon as possible.  I could probably get the next chapter out tomorrow, but it would be so short it would be sick and I think people deserve chapters that are at least 3000 words.

Gohan's cloths are well… exactly like what trunks wore at the world martial arts tournament.

Vegeta gravity is 10 x Earth gravity, so 20 Vegeta gravity is actually 200 times Earth's gravity.  That's quite a bit I think.  I know in the series that Trunks with a power level of 30 million could barely stand in 150 times Earth's gravity but I really don't care.  This is my story and I'll adjust certain things to make it more interesting.  Goku in the series was able to stand 100 times earth's gravity by the time he got to Namek… which is REALLY confusing actually.  150 floors someone with a power level of 30,000,000 while someone with 180,000 is good with 100 times, oh well.  

Anyways, read, review if you like, I'm not a review monger.  If ya like and have some comments on something other then the comments I made at the beginning and end, post it.


	3. Chapter 2: Evil Tidings

**Evil Tidings**

Gohan, Videl and Pan landed in the clearing their house was built in and they walked into the house.  As they got inside Gohan walked over to the couch and sat down on it and became lost in thought.  Videl frowned for a moment before she walked upstairs and put Pan to bed.  Videl walked back downstairs, sat beside Gohan and wrapped her tail and arms around him.

"What's wrong Gohan?"  Videl asked, "You were silent the whole trip home, not to mention the fact that you're frowning and I rarely see you frown."

 "Oh… It's nothing Videl."  Gohan said, not even looking up at Videl.

"Yes it is, you're worried." Videl replied, "I can feel it through our bond.  Something Vegeta said or did while you were locked away with him troubles you.  Don't you trust me?"

"It's not that… It's just that, I'm not sure how to explain this all to you.  I don't even fully understand what's going on."  Gohan said to Videl and raised his head to look towards the door.

"How about you just tell me what he said and I'll sort through it on my own."  Videl said as she smiled at Gohan.

A little smile formed on Gohan's face.  "Alright, Vegeta told me that I'm not a super saiyan, or rather that saiyans used to naturally have my super strength/speed and yellow hair and that some cataclysmic event in the past devolved the saiyan race.  Also, he said that I would only be considered average, even at my maximum during that period and time.  We used to be technologically advanced, more so then now and that planet Vegeta isn't our home planet.  What is worrying me a lot is the fact that we were forced from our home planet, our technology annihilated, and our entire race, a race of 'super saiyans' defeated.  I don't think I want to know what caused that…  Perhaps I'm just being paranoid, this all happened a long time ago… but ever since the battle against Cold and Cooler, I've just been having this feeling that something bad was on the horizon."  Gohan said and shook his head.  "I'm just worrying over the nothing.  I'm sure everything will be fine.  This all happened millenniums ago."

Videl held Gohan tightly, "Don't worry Gohan, I won't let anything happen to you.  Like you said, this was in the past.  We shouldn't worry about the past, we should look ahead to the future and live life to the fullest."  Videl said and kissed Gohan on the cheek. "Now come on, what you need is to have your mind diverted from this, and I know just the way to do it."  Videl finished and gave Gohan an evil grin.

Gohan looked over at Videl and smiled before he picked her up and carried her to their bedroom.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning…

Gohan walked down the stairs to the smell of breakfast being prepared.  A smile lit up his face and he walked through the living room and into the kitchen.  In the kitchen Videl had just finished placing all the food on the table.

"Good timing Gohan, I just finished."  Videl said and smiled at Gohan.

Gohan smiled back until a blur shot past him and stopped at one of the chairs.  Pan smiled up at her parents and waited for their approval, and dug into the food.  Gohan and Videl quickly sat down and joined Pan for breakfast.

Once breakfast had been finished Videl and Gohan began to clean up while Pan rushed outside to play.  "I'm going to head over to my father's place.  We're suppose to meet Vegeta and head out to planet Hiamit and meet with a couple of rulers there.  They are squabbling over a dispute about a planet.  Both say that they the rightful ruler of this planet they found."  Gohan said as he brought the last of the dishes over to the sink for Videl, "He wants me and my father to be with him.  He knows that if we are with him we'll have a bigger impact then if it was just him."

Videl nodded and smiled over at Gohan, "I know, you told me about this last week.  You better get going, you don't want to keep Vegeta waiting.  He's really cranky when things don't go exactly according to how he planned."   Videl said

Gohan nodded and waved as he left the kitchen.  Once outside Gohan quickly took to the air and flew over towards Kakkarot's house.  It was a short flight considering they lived close to each other.  As the house came within sight Gohan noticed his father floating above the house waiting for him.

Kakkarot beckoned his son to follow him as Gohan stopped in front of him and the two of them blasted off towards the city.  The flight to the city passed by uneventful, aside from an explosion seen in the distance as a result of some saiyans sparing.  As the city came within sight the two of them slowed down and landed before the gates of the city.  The two of them were allowed in and once in the city the two of them took off and headed towards the palace.  When the two of them landed at the entrance to the palace a couple of familiar people was waiting for them.

"How have you been Gohan?"  Asked Landyn as the Gohan and Kakkarot approached them.

"Alright I suppose."  Gohan said, "Where's Vegeta?"

"He's currently onboard the star ship waiting for you two to arrive."  Bardock interjected.

Gohan nodded and looked towards the front doors of the palace.  "Well, we shouldn't keep Vegeta waiting.  I'd rather not start this trip with him in a bad mood."  Gohan said.

The other three nodded and they all went into the palace.  The journey through the palace was short but extremely boring.  No one said a word during the walk and the walls were barren leaving very little to do except think.  Eventually they got to the hangar where Vegeta's private starship was located.  The room was massive.  The ceiling towered overhead while cables hung from them.  A large starship hovered in the center of the room as it entered the final stages of preparation before it left.  The starship, on the outside, was long and slender with four wings extending from the back of it.  The entire length was painted a glossy black and it seemed to disappear with the background if the light hit it at a certain angle.

People were rushing back and forth as they removed cables and finished the preparations of the starship.  The four saiyans, Gohan, Kakkarot, Bardock and Landyn flew towards the ship and entered the open door in the bottom of the ship.

"Nice ship, I didn't know Vegeta had a ship like this."  Gohan said as he looked down the hallway they were currently in.

"I know, I didn't find out until it was already completed."  Landyn said, "Vegeta didn't want anyone to know that he had this ship built, or what was included in on it.  I wonder why."

"It doesn't really matter.  We better go find Vegeta, he should be at the bridge."  Bardock said, "It's this way, now if you'll all follow me."  Bardock finished and headed down the hallway in the opposite direction Gohan was looking.

They passed various doors and went up two flights of stairs before they finally reached the door that led to the bridge.  Bardock opened it and entered, followed by Gohan, Kakkarot and Landyn.  The bridge had four levels to it.  The bottom level was a semi-circle around the other three levels and was where most of the navigational controls were situated.  The second level was just above the first, and like the first, formed a semi circle around the top two levels.  This level was were the weapon controls were located.  The next level was shaped like the first two and held the communication equipment.  The top level was just a single chair with a computer terminal surrounding it and various screens hanging from the ceiling above the terminals.

Vegeta was sitting in the chair on the fourth tier as Gohan and the others entered the bridge.  "About time you four got here.  Now everything and everyone has been accounted for."  Vegeta said as he beckoned Gohan to stand beside him.  Bardock took a seat in the bottom tier and took control of piloting the ship. "Bardock, you know our destination, get us there."  Vegeta commanded.

Bardock nodded as Landyn and Kakkarot took a seat and the ship blasted out of the bay as Bardock's fingers flew over the controls in front of him.  The shield around the city went down as the starship blasted out of it and through the atmosphere.  The shields went up again after they had left.  When they exited the atmosphere Bardock's hands flew over the controls again and the ship enter the slip stream and headed towards their destination.

Bardock got up out of his seat and walked up to the fourth tier where Gohan and Vegeta were.  "Vegeta the coordinates have been put in, we should arrive at our destination soon."  Bardock said as Landyn and Kakkarot walked up behind him.

Vegeta nodded. "Good, I can't wait to get this over with so I can return home and get back to my training."  Vegeta said, "Alright you four, come with me.  Gohan this'll be your first time at an off planet meeting and, as my advisor, you are suppose to advise me.  Not that I'll take your advice if I don't like." 

The five saiyans left the bridge through the door they entered and followed the hallway until they reached a metal door with a scanner beside it.  Vegeta pressed his hand against the scanner and the door opened up.  The saiyans entered and looked around.  The room was small, with a single long table in the center of the room.  Around the table were eight chairs.  One at either end and three on each side while in the center a globe hovered above the table giving off light.  A computer terminal was located at one of the ends of the table.

Vegeta walked over to the chair in front of the computer terminal and beckoned the others to sit down.  Gohan took a seat on Vegeta's right while Kakkarot sat beside him.  Landyn and Bardock sat on the other side of the table.  Once they were all seated Vegeta opened up the computer terminal and pressed a few buttons until a hologram appeared in front of him.  The hologram was that of a planet.

Vegeta looked up from the terminal and looked at the others sitting at the table.  "This is Hiamit, the planet that we are heading towards."  Vegeta said, "The entire surface of the planet is covered with water yet the people here still managed to build massive cities of stone and steel.  The cities extend from the ocean floor to the surface of the water and sometimes even into the atmosphere.  They are highly advanced, one of the most highly advanced civilizations currently in existence.  They have managed to control nature to the fullest.  They have tapped into the core, stabilized the gravitational field that surrounds their planet, stop tectonic movements of the plates and kept the planets temperature at a constant 29 degrees (going by Celsius) despite the cooling of all the magma and turning the internal part of the planet into a metropolis."  Vegeta turned to Gohan and stared at him, "You are here because you're my advisor, but your father is here for intimidation.  They are far more advanced then we are and, because of that, they are also far more haughty and full of themselves.  So when we arrive the three of us will leave this ship as super saiyans, just to slam it home that we are stronger despite their technology."  Vegeta cleared his throat before he continued, "Courtesy will be expected out of all of you.  I know this won't be a problem for you Gohan, or your father, but Bardock and Landyn, I want you to try to be courteous.  Remember, courtesy costs nothing.  The people of this place look like us, except that they don't have tails and their skin is covered in scales.  They may be hard to see on some of them, but they are there.  They also have gills and their eyes for the most part will be large and will lack an iris.  The population of the planet is about 1.2 billion and are…"

The intercom in the room turns on, "King Vegeta, I-I'm sorry for interrupting you b-but…  I-think-you-should-take-a-look-at-this."  The communications officer finished hurriedly before he turned away.  A second screen appeared showing nothing but space.

Vegeta became upset, "What am I suppose to be seeing?  There isn't anything there, its just space."  Vegeta snarled     

The officer became even more nervous, "That's the point…  We came out of the slip stream and stopped here.  This should be where Hiamit is…" The officer never got a chance to finish.

"WHAT!"  Vegeta turned to Bardock, "I thought I told you to put in the proper destination!"  Vegeta growled at Bardock.

"I did, I know where the planet is.  I've been there many times before.  I did not make a mistake, I double checked it before I set the ship in motion."  Bardock replied.

Vegeta snarled, stood up and turned to the officer.  "I'll be there in a second, I'll want a full account of what is going on when I return to the bridge."  Vegeta growled.

Vegeta quickly left the council room and walked to the bridge.  Gohan and the others followed close behind him.  Vegeta didn't even wait for the door to open, he smashed it down and stomped up to his chair.  Gohan took position beside him while Bardock sat in his chair down at navigation.  Landyn and Kakkarot took their seats on the weapon control tier.

"Alright I want to know fully what happened."  Vegeta demanded.

Bardock looked over the coordinates and checked them with some star charts.  "I was right, I put the coordinates in correctly.  Unless they moved the planet, it should be right here in front of us."  Bardock said

A frown appeared on Vegeta's face and he turned to his communication officer.  "I want a visualization of outside on the screen to my right."  Vegeta said and the officer was quick to comply.

Vegeta stared at the picture of empty space before his eyes widened a little.  "Zoom in, I want it magnified a hundred times."  Vegeta demanded.

The officer complied once again and the picture zoomed in.  Vegeta sighed and turned the screen off.  "Well, I guess we won't be having that meeting on the planet anymore."

Gohan looked over at Vegeta, "Why not?"  He asked.

"Because it no longer exists, that's why.  Something destroyed it, and that worries me.  I was in contact with them this morning.  Whatever destroyed that planet had to be strong, very strong.  I doubt even you could take out that planet in such a short time."  Vegeta said as he turned to Gohan.

Everyone on the bridge had differing degrees of surprise on their face.  Gohan's face paled visibly, _1.2 billion people dead… in a matter of hours…  what could have done this?_   "What do we do now?"  Gohan asked.

Vegeta looked up at Gohan, his face aglow.  "We prepare for war.  Who ever did this is going to pay, its been awhile since we have had a war.  I am kind of looking forward to this."  Vegeta said and turned to his crew.  "Alright, turn this ship around and head for home.  Send a message to all of our allies, tell them to prepare for war, there is a new threat on the horizon, and we are going to show them what it means to mess with the saiyans." 

The crew cheered and the activity on the bridge started up and built into a frenzy.  The ship swiftly turned about and re-entered the slip stream and headed for Vegeta at full speed.  Messages were sent out to all their allies and saiyans rushed back and forth with glee written across their face.

Vegeta turned to Gohan and, for one of the first time, looked at him in pity, "Why don't you head to your quarters and rest while we head home.  I know how… you react to this.  Just take it easy, I'll need you at your best when we fight whoever did this…" Vegeta sighed, "I really don't think a race did this, if another race had attacked the planet they would of still had time to send out a distress beacon.  The fact that they didn't means that it was the work of one being, and there are very few beings in the universe with that kind of power."  Vegeta finished.

Gohan looked at Vegeta in surprise, "T-Thank you, I think I'll retire to my quarters, like you suggested."  With that Gohan left the bridge with another saiyan in the lead to show him to his room.

--------------------------------

Where planet Hiamit used to exist…

A massive saiyan hovered in space in a bubble.  He stood about seven feet tall with spiky green hair, pure white eyes and massive amounts of muscles.  He stared at the ship as it turned around and re-entered the slip stream.  The saiyan in the bubble arched backwards and roared, "KAKAROT!" and blasted off in the direction the ship headed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two hours later…

The starship dropped out of the slip stream and headed into the atmosphere around Vegeta.  Soon afterwards the ship docked inside the palace and the saiyans were rushing off it to prepare for war.  The last one off was Gohan who slowly floated down to the ground.  Kakkarot walked over to his son and put his arms around him.

"Come on Gohan, let's head home.  I know, I can't believe what happened either… 1.2 billion people, gone in an instant.  We had better prepare.  We have no idea when or where they are going to strike next."  Kakkarot said to his son as he tried to comfort him.

Gohan only nodded and allowed his father to guide him through the palace hallways.  When they reached the entrance to the palace Videl rushed towards Gohan and folded her arms around him as Pan hopped onto his shoulder.

"Oh Gohan, when I felt you go depressed I knew something bad had happened and came here to meet you.  When I felt you above the planet and heading towards it, hours before you should have been, I knew something was wrong."  Videl said as she held onto him tightly, "Let's go home, I'll fix you up something nice to eat."

Gohan smiled softly, "Alright, let's go home…  I can't seem to stay sad while you two are around."  Gohan said as he broke the embrace and brought Pan down from his shoulder and held her in his arms.  Pan squealed in delight and hugged her father.

Kakkarot smiled to himself, _Gohan will be all right.  Videl was the perfect choice for him_.  Kakkarot took to the air and flew home.  When Kakkarot landed at his house he walked into the door and was greeted by Chichi and Goten.

"Why are you home so soon Kakkarot?"  Chichi asked.

"Because Hiamit doesn't exist anymore and we're preparing for war.  Whoever or whatever destroyed Hiamit won't catch us off our guard."  Kakkarot said before he walked over to the chair and sat down.

Chichi gasped and her eyes widened, "I can't believe it, all those people…" Chichi said.

Goten looked back and forth between his parents, "Does this mean I get to fight strong people again?"  Goten asked.

Kakkarot looked at his son and sighed, "Goten, I want you to go find Trunks and stay with him.  Try to stay out of the main battle, I don't want either of you to get hurt."  Kakkarot said.

Goten nodded, "Okay, I'll go find Trunks and tell him what happened, he's probably over at our fort."  Goten said and zipped out of the house.

Back at Gohan's place Gohan was sitting inside his house on his couch with Videl beside him.  Pan was in the gravity chamber training at 3 times Vegeta gravity by herself. 

Gohan sighed and looked up at Videl, "I suppose we better get some training in.  I can't let myself feel bad about what happened to Hiamit.  There wasn't anything I could have done to stop it."  Gohan said and Videl just nodded, "Videl, I want you to go easy though.  Your pregnant and I do not want either you or the child to get hurt."  Videl frowned but Gohan put a finger to her lips, "I mean it."

Videl sighed, "All right Gohan, but I'll want some compensation for this."  Videl said.

Gohan let out a sigh and nodded, "Fine, but we will figure that out later."  Gohan said.

Gohan and Videl got up and walked through the door and headed towards the gravity chamber where Pan was to train.

 To be continued…

Vegeta's ship looks like… well picture a scout from Starcraft, make it wider, taller, longer, totally black and 4 wings instead of 2 and that's the legist of it.

I'm Canadian and I use Celsius, if you don't use it, well… 29 degrees Celsius is about 90 degrees Fahrenheit in case your wonder. 

Sorry for the delay… but I am in my last year of high school and preparing for University and well… let's just say I have a busy schedule and I'm finding I have less time for my story then I thought I would when I started it.


	4. Chapter 3: Preparations

Chapter 3: Preparations

Goten flew through the air towards the fort that Trunks and him had built not taking any notice of the surroundings at all. _I wonder who is gonna show up?  All the adults are getting geared for war, I wonder what it could be_, Goten thought as he flew over a mountain range and spiraled down into the valley beyond it.

The valley was nestled between two mountain ranges and was not accessible by the ground through any means.  The only way into the valley was by flight, which was exactly how Son Goten got into the valley.  In the valley a large forest of tall trees covered the entire floor of the valley and continued some way up the slopes of the mountains that ringed the valley.  In the middle of the forest, in the center of the valley a single spire poked its head out from the canopy of the trees and it was to this structure that Goten flew.  As Goten approached the sentry turrets on the tower that had been aimed towards him shut down and disappeared back into the structure.  When Goten reached the spire he zipped downwards towards the base through the canopy of the trees.  Darkness closed around Goten as he landed on the valley floor in front of the spires seemingly smooth exterior wall.  Goten ran up to the wall and opened a secret panel on the side of it and punched in a code.  A faint outlined appeared in the shape of a door which promptly went inwards an inch and slid soundlessly into the wall.  Light spilled out into the dark forest as the door opened and before it had fully slid into the wall Goten had already entered and was racing down the hallway towards the control room.  The youngest child of Kakkarot ran towards the elevator where he pushed the button that stood for the control room and was teleported there.

As Goten appeared in a flash of light in the elevator at the control room Trunks turned around in the chair he was sitting in and smirked at Goten.  "So what brings you here?  I thought you were spending the day home?"  Trunks asked curiously.

Goten ran up to Trunks stopping just shy of the chair and quickly said, "I-came-here-as-fast-as-I-could-to-tell-you-something-awesome!"

Trunks held up his hand, "I barely understand a word you just said, say it **slower**."  Trunks said.

Goten took a deep breath and repeated himself a little slower, "I came here as fast as I could to tell you something awesome!"  Goten said with obvious excitement.

Trunks raised his eyebrow at Goten and smiled, "And what's that?"

"Something that can destroy a whole world easily, and has already done so, might be headed in this direction, everyone's getting ready for war!"  Goten babbled excited, "I can't wait to have them attack so we can try out this fort."  Goten said as ran over to the main screen and switched on the exterior monitor.  "This is gonna be so awesome, I can't wait."

Trunks gaped at Goten as what he said sank in, "An entire world?  Destroyed?  Do you know when they are gonna attack us Goten?"  Trunks as quickly as he hoped out of the chair and raced over to join Goten.

"I got no idea, why don't we call your father and ask him?  He might know."  Goten replied.

Trunks looked over at Goten in amazement, "That's gotta be the first intelligent thing I've ever heard you say!"  Trunks exclaimed.

Goten looked over at Trunks and grinned, "Hehe."

Trunks flew over to the communications control panel and started pushing buttons and turned on a holographic-projector to create a secondary screen aside from the main one.  Nothing happened for a minute and then the screen flickered and a face appeared on it.

"Ahh, Prince Trunks, what may I do for you?"  The communications officer at the palace said.

"Could you get my father?  I need to ask him a question."  Trunks said.

The officer looked a bit nervous before asking another saiyan to go get the king. "As you wish Prince Trunks, but you father is training at the moment and it may be some time before he can come. You know how he is."  The officer said as he shrugged apologetically before turning away.  After a minute the officer looked back and asked, "Why don't you ask me?  I may be able to answer it for you."

"No, I want to ask my father," Trunks said and turned to Goten and was about to say something before a loud sound on the other side of the channel interrupted him.  Trunks turned back and watched as his father walked over to the screen.

Vegeta looked at Trunks and saw Goten standing behind him and nodded, "I know what you wish to ask, it's about the war right?"  Vegeta inquired.

Trunks nodded, "I wanted to know if we are going to be attacked?  I wanna fight some enemies, no more of this sparing.  I want a true fight."  Trunks stated.

Vegeta smirked, "That's my boy, but no, you are not to participate in this conflict.  You'll probably be safe in that fort that your mother had constructed for you, at least for a while."  Vegeta said before glancing around him, "I'm going to head over there now.  There is something I need to speak with you about, and you alone.  Make sure your turrets don't fire at me again." Goten snickered before he was silenced by Vegeta's glare, "If you do I'll reduce that fort to scrap."  Vegeta firmly said before he turned and walked out the door.

Trunks turned the screen off and sat back down in the command chair and turned the sentry turrets off.  Despite it being funny watching Vegeta dodinge the blasts, he didn't want to lose the fort knowing his father didn't make idle threats like that.  Goten hopped into the assistant commander's chair and started twirling it around aimlessly.  A minute later a beep started up and a hologram appeared above the control panel, which showed Vegeta as he headed towards their fort at a high speed.  Vegeta appeared at the base of the tower a few seconds later and started to bang on it.

Trunks looked over at Goten and pushed a green button on the arm of his chair and typed in the code that opened the door at the base of the spire.  Vegeta walked into the fort and headed to the same elevator that Goten used.  When Vegeta appeared in the control room he walked in a little ways and spared a glance at Goten before he ignored him.

"I want to speak to you alone Trunks."  Vegeta said as he looked at Goten.

"Hey!  What you say to Trunks you can say to me, besides I'll just hear it from my big brother or my dad anyways."  Goten said as he stood up.

Vegeta frowned and then shrugged and ignored Goten once more, "Trunks, the reason I don't want you to participate in this conflict is because I do not think we'll be against an army…  I think we'll be against a single foe, or small group of people."  Vegeta said. "Whoever they are can wipe out a very technologically advanced civilization in a matter of hours without giving it a chance to send out a distress beacon.  This can only mean that whoever or whatever did this is more then likely stronger then Gohan, which means he/she/it far out classes you."  Vegeta finished.

Trunks opened his mouth to protest but Vegeta cut him off, "I mean it Trunks, I don't want you involved.  I… I don't want to see my only child destroyed by whatever monster did this, you're not ready yet to face something like this."  Vegeta said.

Trunks sighed and nodded.  Vegeta turned and walked back towards the elevator but stopped just shy of it and turned to face Goten.  "The same goes for you Goten, I'm giving you two a royal order to not attack whatever did this.  As much as I don't want to admit it, you are too valuable to die at your age.  Trunks will need you when he takes the throne from me should I die."  Vegeta said and left the control room.

Goten's jaw had dropped and stared in the direction that Vegeta had gone.  Trunks looked over at Goten with an equally shocked look on his face.

"Di-Did your father just… compliment me?"  Goten asked Trunks.

Trunks nodded, speechless.  The two young saiyans turned back to the main screen and watched as Vegeta blasted out across the valley and quickly left it behind.  Trunks shook himself out of his stupor and looked at Goten as a grin creased his face.

"Hey Goten, I got an idea."  Trunks said.

Goten turned and listened attentively, "My father said we couldn't get directly involved right?  He never said anything about getting indirectly involved in the fight."  Trunks said with a grin on his face.

Goten smiled happily and leaned forward, "What do you have in mind Trunks?"  Goten asked excitedly.

Trunks smirked and whispered confidentially to Goten, "Well, as I see it…"

--------------------------------

Elsewhere…

Vegeta flew over the landscape at a quick pace and landed on the lawn outside Kakkarot's home.  Vegeta walked over to the door and knocked on it instead of just walking in like he did with everyone else.  The dual ki pan wielding Chichi was enough to deter him from just walking in, even as a super saiyan.  Chichi opened the door a few moments after the knock and let the king in.

"What do you want Vegeta?"  Chichi asked.

Vegeta stood in the doorway and said, "Where's your mate?  I need a training partner and by the feel of it Gohan is already training with his mate so I can't spar against him."

"I'm right here Vegeta."  Kakkarot said as he walked out of the kitchen as he licked the last crumbs from his snack off his face.

"Good, come along I haven't got all day."  Vegeta commanded and walked out of the house and quickly blasted away.

Kakkarot shrugged and kissed Chichi good-bye before he followed Vegeta into the air.  Kakkarot quickly caught up to the king and both blasted off to a distant location in silence.  The scenery went by in a blur for the two saiyans and they quickly reached their destination.  A large desert backed up against a mountain range with a large oasis nearby.

Vegeta stopped and turned to face Kakkarot who did the same.  The two of them got into fighting stances and waited for a second before they began.  A shockwave erupted across the landscape as Kakkarot's and Vegeta's fists collided together.  The two saiyans dodged and blocked one another's attacks until Kakkarot's punch slipped through the king's defenses and smashed him backwards through the air.  Kakkarot flew forward to follow the attack up only to be met by an after image of the king a split second before two fists pounded into his back and sent him into the ground below.

Vegeta hovered above the crater that Kakkarot had created and smirked for a second before a yell resounded across the landscape and an explosion erupted from below.  A shockwave rippled outwards from Kakkarot as he finished his power up and stood looking up at Vegeta with teal eyes.  Kakkarot flew up and head-butted Vegeta creating a sonic boom in the process while sending Vegeta further up into the air.  Kakkarot began to rapidly fire energy blasts through the air at Vegeta creating a large explosion and a lot of smoke.

Another yell resounded across the landscape and another shockwave rippled out, this time from Vegeta, blowing the smoke screen away and revealing a super saiyan Vegeta staring down at Kakkarot coldly.  Vegeta zipped down and threw a punch at Kakkarot, which was blocked and countered with a kick to the side.  Vegeta caught the leg and began to swing Kakkarot around only to get his second leg in the side of the head.  Vegeta did a back flip once before blasting forward and caught Kakkarot in the jaw with a punch and threw an energy blast into his stomach.

Vegeta chased after Kakkarot only to find Kakkarot prepared and a fist in the cheek for the effort.  Vegeta reeled back for a second before attacking once more.  Punches flew back and forth between the two super saiyans at an incredible pace.  After several minutes of continuous punching the two broke apart for a breather and slowly circled each other.

Vegeta grinned and spread his legs and arms apart and began concentrating.  Soon a yellow glow began to outline his body and Vegeta thrust his arms forward toward Kakkarot.  Kakkarot backed up a ways and grinned as well as he cupped his hands to his side.

"Ka."

"Me."

Blue energy began to swirl into the cupped hands of Kakkarot as gold energy began to sparkle and crackle within Vegeta's.

"Ha."

"Me."

A ball of blue energy came into existence in the cupped hands of Kakkarot as more energy began to swirl into it making the ball expand.  The energy within Vegeta's hands coalesced into a crackling ball of golden energy that, like Kakkarot's, continued to expand.

"**HA!**"

"**FINAL FLASH!**"

With those three words Kakkarot shoved his hands forward and let his energy wave loose at Vegeta as Vegeta fired his own energy wave back at Kakkarot.  The two attacks slammed into one another and created a massive ball of energy at the epicenter of the attack.  The two saiyans struggled back and forth as each tried to get their attacks to over power the other, pumping more and more energy into their respective attacks.

With a massive explosion the ball of energy that had gathered at the center exploded as it became too volatile to stay in existence.  Inside the explosion a shockwave erupted as Kakkarot and Vegeta met head on throwing punches left and right at each other.  Vegeta connected with Kakkarot's chin with a hard left hook and proceeded to kick him towards the ground.  Vegeta quickly chased after him and delivered a double kick into the small of Kakkarot's back and sent him flying towards the ground creating a small trench before coming to a stop in the oasis.  An explosion appeared at the spot Kakkarot stopped and a split second later the king was flying backwards from a massive kick.  Kakkarot appeared ahead of Vegeta, grabbed his arms, and threw him towards the mountain range.  Not content with just throwing Vegeta, Kakkarot chased after him while throwing energy blasts at him.

Despite the furious onslaught Vegeta quickly recovered and stopped his backwards momentum before blasting forward and delivering a hard punch into Kakkarot's stomach.  Kakkarot doubled over and allowed the other saiyan to deliver a hard overhand blow to the base of his neck, which sent the first saiyan spiraling downwards.  Vegeta sent another energy wave down at Kakkarot hoping to end the battle only to have to wave stopped. Kakkarot charged ki into his hands and formed a triangular shield above his head before he blasted upwards, straight through the energy wave.  Vegeta saw none of this so was totally unprepared when Kakkarot appeared out of nowhere to deliver a massive upper cut that caused Vegeta to lose some teeth.

Kakkarot appeared up above Vegeta and began to deliver an overhand blow to Vegeta only to have Vegeta speed up, flip around and deliver a double kick into his stomach.  Kakkarot flew upwards, with the sounds of a crack in his ears, for a short bit before he began to fall.  Vegeta dashed down after him and went to kick him again only to have Kakkarot right himself, grab his left arm and snap it just before he kicked Vegeta towards the ground.  Vegeta yelled in pain before crashing into the ground.  Kakkarot flew down after him and kneed him in the stomach fracturing several of Vegeta's ribs.

Vegeta rolled out from under Kakkarot and snarled at him as he held his left arm  "You'll pay for that one… Kakkarot."  He snarled out before he jumped at said saiyan and kicked him in the neck, crushing his adam's apple.  Vegeta powered up a low ki blast and shoved it into Kakkarot's mouth before let it go.  A small explosion rippled through Kakkarot's body before he lost consciousness.  

Vegeta walked over to Kakkarot, picked him up with his good arm and slung him over his shoulder before he blasted off into the sky.  Vegeta headed towards the palace and the regeneration chambers located there.  "Good fight Kakkarot, just like what I would expect from someone of your caliber."  Vegeta said to the unconscious man slung over his shoulder, "To bad you can't beat me, but that's to be expected.  I AM the king of the saiyans after all, and pretty soon, I'll be able to beat your son as well."  Vegeta said with a smirk and slowed down a little as he appeared at the gates to the capital.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

During the fight between Kakkarot and Vegeta…

Goten and Trunks walked down the hallways of the palace in search of the right room.  Neither of them noticed their surroundings, aside from the signs on the doors, because they'd been in the palace so often and it was so bland that there wasn't anything new or interesting to even look at.

"Do you think your mother will let us borrow it Trunks?"  Goten asked quietly.

"Of course she will, why wouldn't she?  She doesn't know why we need it, for all she knows we could using it for our war games." Trunks replied smugly and smiled as they came up to a door with a special sign above it.  "He we are, my mothers personal laboratory."  Trunks said.

Trunks opened the door without knocking and walked in with Goten close behind.  The room was much different from the hallway outside.  The only similarities were the fact that the walls, ceiling and floors were both white and made of the same substance, aside from that they were opposite.  Tables lay scattered throughout the room with many machines and experimental weapons on them.  A long counter at the far end of the room was filled with hard drives, monitors, and other computer equipment.  A few scientists, along with Bulma were peering at a half-finished piece of machinery on one of the tables while another one was running diagnostics of it on one of the computers.  Bulma looked up and smiled at Trunks as he entered and then frowned at him as she noticed Goten.

"What do you want this time Trunks?"  Bulma asked, slightly upset, "The last time you came in here with Goten you ruined the experiment I was currently working on as well as stealing one of my completed ones."  Bulma finished.

Trunks held up his hands apologetically, not wanting to anger his mother who had been spending much of her free time with Chichi. "Don't worry mother, I'm here to ask you if we could… add something to our fort, not to break anything."  He said hastily.

Bulma's eyes narrowed, "And just WHAT were you going to ask for young man?"  Bulma replied, wariness in her voice.

"Oh… nothing much, I just wanted to add… well our fort doesn't seem complete without an-ion-cannon." Trunks ended quickly.

Bulma's smirked slightly, "And just what were you intending to use this… ion cannon for?"  Bulma inquired as she raised one of her eyebrows.

"Well, if we were ever attacked we would be better able to defend ourselves and plus it would help us when we played war."  Trunks said, "It would give us a good chance to figure out how to dodge ion blasts, or if we can't, how to block them."  Trunks said brightly.

Bulma hesitated for a moment before she said, "Alright, you can have one, only ONE mind you, I don't want your fort to end up with more fire power then the capital city because you got carried away."  Bulma said as she tossed the key to the warehouse to Trunks,  "And be careful, that weapon is dangero…" Bulma never got to finish as Trunks and Goten were already sprinting down the hallway towards the warehouse.  "Kids these days."  Bulma said with a shake of her head as she got back to work on her experiment.

When Trunks and Goten got to the warehouse, Trunks unlocked the door, headed inside and gaped.  The ion cannon was enormous.  It was almost a hundred meters in length and half that in circumference.  Goten looked over at Trunks before saying, "Do you think that will even fit on our fort?"  Goten asked.

Trunks didn't say anything and just stood there staring at it for a moment before he shook his head clear.  "Come on Goten, lets go take it back, I was gonna take more then one but with something this big, I don't think we'll need more then one."  Trunks said as he positioned himself under near side of the cannon.  "Now go to the other side and pick it up, we'll find some way of attaching it once we get it back."  Trunks said.  Goten quickly complied and got to the other side and lifted it off the ground at the same time as Trunks.  Trunks fired a tiny blast at one of the buttons on the wall and the roof of the warehouse opened up.  Trunks and Goten floated out of the warehouse and flew slowly over the city.  Many of the citizens of the city just shook their heads in amazement but left the two alone.  They all knew about the antics that Goten and Trunks did on occasion, and none really wanted to know what they were doing this time.

After about an hour of slow flying Goten and Trunks finally entered the valley where their fort was located.  The two smiled in relief as their destination came in sight, both with similar thoughts of, _damn this thing is heavy, I'm glad we're almost there._  When they reached the fort Trunks let go of the cannon with his hands and quickly flew under it.  He used his body to hold it up as he quickly typed in a code on his wristband.  The top of the fort opened up and a large, but empty, half-circle support rose up.  Trunks looked back at Goten and grinned and the two of them quickly set the ion cannon into the support.

Goten and Trunks quickly secured it in place and flew over to each other.  "I knew having that support built would be useful for something."  Trunks said with a smirk.  "I just didn't expect it to hold an ion cannon.  I'm sure glad I thought ahead."  Trunks finished.

Goten nodded vigorously and smiled happily, "We'll have a surprise for whoever attacks this planet."  Goten said with a smile that was shared by Trunks.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1 day later on planet Ayuin…

A lone saiyan hovered above the planet, just outside the atmosphere in a shield of ki.  This saiyan wasn't like the others, as in it had no ties to anyone, not since it killed its own father.  Its father had tried to stop it from destroying a planet that had offended him, and he had paid for it, with his life.

Down on the planet one of the Ayuian officers in the radar control room in the Capital frowned at a small blip on the radar.  So small in fact that it shouldn't even exist.  It was too small to even be a saiyan space pod.  The officer looked over at one of his subordinates and barked out an order, "I want a visual of that thing on the radar.  I want to know what the hell it is.  We were told of a force that took out Hiamit, and I'll be damned if we are caught unprepared."  The officer said, "That may be one of the forward scouts."

Another Ayuian nodded and brought up a visual screened and zoomed in on the object on the radar.  The officer looked at the picture and frowned, "That can't be right, if this picture is accurate… we're looking at a saiyan, a really strange one at that.  I've never seen a saiyan that muscular, or with that particular color of hair."  The officer said, "Send for the empress, I think she needs to see this."  The officer said.

One of the Ayuians went to the door and told the guard there to go get the empress.  The guard nodded and left to find her.  The officer went back to the screen and began to mull over the question as to why a saiyan would be floating in space.  The only saiyan he knew capable of that was Son Gohan and the saiyan currently in space looked nothing like him.

A minute later the door opened and the officer turned expecting to see the empress but instead found one of the admirals.  The admiral walked over to the screen and frowned before looking at the officer, "Has he done anything except sit there and watch the planet?"  The admiral asked.

The radar officer just shook his head and the admiral went back to frowning before snapping his fingers.  A small floating robot flew over to him and hovered beside him.  The admiral pushed a few buttons on the robot and typed in a password making a screen pop up and a voice appear, "What do you wish to know?"

"Access the external scanners on one of the satellites in orbit and have it scan the saiyan.  I want to know everything about it."  The admiral said.

The robot processed the command a bit before responding, "I'm sorry that is not possible, all satellites and space stations that were in orbit around the planet are gone."

The admiral's eyes widen in surprise before he yelled, "TURN OF THE FUCKING DEFENSES! I WANT THAT SAIYAN DESTROYED!"  The admiral turned and bolted from the room with fear emanating from him.  The officer and his subordinate looked at one another in shock before saying in unison, "Oh shit!"

A minute later, rumbles were heard and the planetary shield and defenses came online.  Some of the hangars opened up and star ships began to fly out of them.  The empress walked in just then and took one look at the screen before a small sigh escaped her lips.  She walked over to the controls and began to rapidly type on them, "I wish to record and send a message to King Vegeta on Planet Vegeta."  She said calmly.

"King Vegeta, I'm sorry to say that as you hear this message, I am probably dead, and my planet destroyed.  Apparently whatever took out Hiamit is about to attack us."  She paused for a second before continuing, "I'm entrusting the rest of my race, the ones that are off world and the ones that survive the destruction of the planet, into your hands.  I'm not sure exactly who this saiyan is, but I know he isn't one of yours.  He appears to be in a super saiyan state, but in one that none of the ones currently on your planet possess.  Here's an image of the saiyan in the sky."  She pushed a few buttons and an image appeared before her on a screen that quickly disappeared into the computer.  A massive explosion rocked the planet as the planetary shield went down and the generator that was supporting it exploded.  The empress calmly continued, "Hopefully this message gets to you in time.  We didn't know when or were the next strike would come, but judging from that fact that this planet currently lies directly between your planet and where Planet Hiamit used to be, the next strike will be your planet."  Another explosion rocked the planet and light flashed through the windows of the room.  "This saiyan will be there probably a day after this message is sent.  I hope you are more prepared for this… beast then we were.  Good-bye Vegeta, and take care."  The empress finished calmly and pressed another button.  A few seconds later the message was sent to Planet Vegeta, and a few seconds after that another massive explosion rocked the planet, this time it ripped through the room that held the empress, killing her and everyone else in the palace instantly.

Planet Ayuin had been an ally of Planet Vegeta, and had been since the beginning of the civil war between the saiyans.  It used to be halfway between Hiamit and Planet Vegeta.  Used to be, as in it no longer existed.

To be continued…

Sorry for not updating for so long.  There were several reasons, school and university preparations for one, but the main reason was the fact I just didn't feel like continuing the story.  The past two days I did, so I did up another chapter.  Hope you like it. I know I did.  I had problems with this chapter though.  I didn't want to start any of the main action on Planet Vegeta so I needed a filler, but a good filler, not one of those cheesy ones people usually see.  It took me about a month to figure out one this good.  Well it's good in my opinion and that's really all that counts J

No idea when the next chapter will be out.  It'll be out when… well whenever its out I guess. I may finish it today, I might not till summer, who knows, it all depends on how much free time I got and whether or not I feel like doing another chapter.

Just a warning a head of time, the next two chapters will be… well VERY violent and VERY bloody and sickening, not for the feint of heart or anyone under 17.

Anyways, that's enough of my ramble.


	5. Chapter 4: Clash of the Super Saiyans

**Chapter 4: Clash of the Super Saiyans**

The whole palace was in an uproar when the message from Ayuin arrived.  Vegeta was currently in his study; Kakkarot, Gohan and Landyn were all in there as well.  Vegeta was seated on one side of the desk with the screen of the computer built into the desk opened up in front of him while the other three sat across from him. Vegeta pressed a blue button on the console in front of the screen and the message began to play from the start.

"King Vegeta, I'm sorry to say that as you hear this message, I am probably dead, and my planet destroyed.  Apparently whatever took out Hiamit is about to attack us."  There was a pause, "I'm entrusting the rest of my race, the ones that are off world and the ones that survive the destruction of the planet, into your hands. I'm not sure exactly who this saiyan is, but I know he isn't one of yours.  He appears to be in a super saiyan state, but in one that none of the ones currently on your planet possess.  Here's an image of the saiyan in the sky."  A picture appeared on the screen in front of Vegeta, which made his eyes widen, and an explosion is heard through the message, "Hopefully this message gets to you in time.  We didn't know when or were the next strike would come, but judging from that fact that this planet currently lies directly between your planet and where Planet Hiamit used to be, the next strike will be your planet."  Another explosion sounded in the message,  "This saiyan will be there probably a day after this message is sent.  I hope you are more prepared for this… beast then we were.  Good-bye Vegeta, and take care."  The message ended leaving the four saiyans in a stunned silence.

Vegeta was the first to break the silence, "It's him…  After all these years, I thought he was dead.  My father had him stabbed when he was born, how did he live?"  Vegeta wondered aloud.

Gohan leaned forward, "You know who caused the destruction of those two planets?  Who is it?"  Gohan asked politely.

Vegeta looked up from the screen as he typed something into the console.  The middle of the desk opened up and a holographic-projector appeared from it which then displayed an image to the other three saiyans.  "This saiyan you are looking at…  Well, his name is Brolly.  He was born with an abnormal power level, as in it was higher then some full-grown saiyans.  He was born with a power level of 10,000.  My father had him stabbed in his crib and thrown out with the trash, literally.  Brolly's father protested and he joined his son.  Apparently Brolly lived through his experience, and now he's coming back for revenge."  Vegeta finished.

Gohan sat back in his seat, blinked and then analyzed the picture even more.  "What kind of super saiyan state is that?"  Gohan asked, "Does that mean there is another level to attain besides the one in the picture?"

Vegeta frowned, "It shouldn't be anything we can't handle.  After all, we have three super saiyans here, along with an army of saiyans. We can't fail, we must not fail." Vegeta said with conviction.  "No matter how strong Brolly is, he can't win. But it wouldn't hurt to be prepared. Gohan, from the date on this message he should be here by tomorrow morning, I want you and Kakkarot to be with me.  We're going to give Brolly a welcome he will never forget."  Vegeta finished.

"What do you want me to tell my portion of the army?"  Gohan asked.

"You decide Gohan, I didn't make you a general in times like this for nothing.  The parts of the army aside from yours will be used to protect the cities though."  Vegeta said.

Gohan nodded and stood up, "If you'll excuse me Vegeta, it'll probably take the rest of the day for me to get my portion of the army in order."

Vegeta waved him away and Gohan left the room.  Vegeta turned to Kakkarot, "I want you to send your son to his fort, he'll be safe there.  Also I want to see you later today.  You and me are going to have a little sparing session, our last one before Brolly arrives."  Vegeta said, "But until then… do whatever you want. Dismissed."

Kakkarot nodded, got up and left the room to spend the morning with his mate.  Vegeta turned to look at Landyn, "I want you to assemble the royal guard, the entire unit, and I want them ready for tomorrow morning. Whatever other free time you have, is yours to do with as you wish."  Vegeta finished.

Landyn stood up, "As you wish King Vegeta."  Landyn said before he left the room.

Once Landyn left the room Vegeta sat back in his seat and sighed, "This is a day I wish I never had to deal with.  They may not know it… but Brolly is far stronger then any of us."  Vegeta said sadly before sending a message to his son requesting his presence.

Vegeta waited for a few minutes before the door to the study opened to reveal his son in the doorway. "You wanted to see me father?" Trunks asked as he looked at the picture hovering in the center of the room.

Vegeta nodded and turned the image off, "Yes I do. The creature that destroyed Hiamit just took out Ayuin as well, and will be here within a day.  I want you to go to your fort and stay there until this issue has been resolved.  I do NOT want you involved in this conflict.  Do you understand Trunks?"  Vegeta asked.

"But I can help, I know I can.  I'm not a weakling like all those other saiyans."  Trunks protested.

Vegeta slammed his hand down on his desk cracking it.  "You do not understand what we are up against!  Those weakling saiyans will die, all of them!  They will be like flies are to a dog against that creature, an annoyance!  You may be stronger then most, but you will fair no better then them!"  Vegeta said before he continued on in a softer voice, "I don't want to lose you.  You are too valuable; in fact you are currently the most valuable person on this planet.  I am expendable because you are here.  You are not. Everyone is expendable, except you."  Vegeta finished

Trunks stared at his father in surprise, "But…" Trunks started

"NO BUTS!  You will obey me, go to your fort, and you will stay there.  You are not to go NEAR the thing.  DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!" Vegeta yelled and gave Trunks a glare.

Trunks stood stiff and nodded slowly, "Good, now leave me, I have some… things I need to attend to." Vegeta said.

Trunks left the room stiffly and didn't look back.  Vegeta sighed before he got up and left the study.  There is someone I've been… neglecting for the past little while that I need to make it up to, Vegeta thought to himself.

--------------------------------

Elsewhere…

Gohan walked through the palace and headed towards one of the auditoriums.  The few saiyans that he passed in the halls of the palace gave him a respective birth.  The young super saiyan nodded to those that he passed and arrived at the place he wanted to be half an hour after he left Vegeta's study.  The auditorium was a large open roof room with seats lining the walls of it.  There were fifty levels to this auditorium, each level a little above the one before it and all of them filled with seats.  Once inside Gohan flew up to the podium at the center of the auditorium and flared his ki to a certain position and held it there, a beacon for anyone who knew what it meant.  Gohan didn't have long to wait as saiyans began to fly in from all directions.  The saiyans that flew in varied drastically with almost as many females as males, some large, some small while others old and some young. None of the saiyans were close to Gohan's strength, and all of them respected him because of it.  Gohan waited patiently as more and more saiyans poured into the auditorium and began to take their seats.  Others that had arrived at the beginning began to talk to their neighbors to try and pass the time.

Eventually, after two hours had passed, Gohan flared his energy sharply as he created an aura around him for a second and let it go creating a miniature shockwave that caught everyone's attention.

"Alright, enough of you have gathered for me to begin.  The others that are not here can be told by their commanders what to do."  Gohan started as he turned around in a circle to survey the gathered saiyans, "You have all been wondering when and where we will be called to fight, and those two issues I will be addressing today.  As of an hour and a half ago I learned from your king that Planet Vegeta is the next target.  I mean to stop the attacker before he can take out this planet, like he did Hiamit and Ayuin."  Gohan said just as most of the saiyans began to talk to one another without bothering to conceal their voice.  "LISTEN!" Gohan roared causing everyone to quiet down, "When I said Ayuin was destroyed, I meant that it had also been totally annihilated, but at least this time they were able to get a message out in time before they were destroyed.  The destruction of both planets can be attributed to one person, not an army like all of us thought to begin with.  This one person goes by the name of Brolly."  Whispers began to circulate throughout the auditorium, "Brolly was born here.  He is a saiyan, but unfortunately, he is also a super saiyan, and by the looks of it, a very strong one. Every saiyan under my command, along with my father and Vegeta will engage Brolly as he enters the atmosphere, the other parts of the army will take care of protecting the cities.  We get to meet the threat head on."  A roar erupted from saiyans as they all voiced their approval of the plan.  Many of the saiyans started grinning at one another and began to boast about how they couldn't lose.  "I want the commanders of each legion to stay, I need to speak with each of you separately.  The rest of you are dismissed." Gohan said.

Most of the saiyans rose in the air and flew out the auditorium cheering and loudly discussing how they were going to take the super saiyan down themselves and prove themselves in front of the king.  Four saiyans flew away from the main crowd of them and landed in front of Gohan on the podium.  Two of them were heavily muscled males, the third was a female and the fourth was male as well, but much smaller and much more devious then the other two.

A half-hour later, when the last saiyan besides the one Gohan has asked for had left, Gohan turned to the two heavily muscled men and addressed them, "Alright Nephyl and Ruon, I want you two to organize your legions in how ever way you see fit, but I want you to make sure you accomplish one thing.  This is a super saiyan we are dealing with and none of your men can handle him one on one, leave that to my father, Vegeta and I.  I want you two keep Brolly busy at all times.  We should be able to handle him, but should he get the upper hand I want your armies to be there and on his ass.  We cannot give him any time to concentrate on any single individual or he will rip that person to shreds."  Gohan said.

The two men looked at each other and then back at Gohan, "But sir, we should be in the thick of the action. I have twelve thousand fellow saiyans waitin to get a piece of him.  You can't just have me tell them to be a… what is that word… diversona… daversonry… ahh you know what I mean."  Nephyl complained.

Gohan cut his hand across in front of him, "I mean it Nephyl. I do not want to lose more saiyans than I have too.  If you attack them head on without me, my father or Vegeta there you will very likely all die. You two are dismissed, you have your orders."  Gohan finished and turned to address the small male and the female saiyan.

The two muscular saiyans glared at Gohan before they blasted off into the sky leaving Gohan alone with the other two commanders.  "God I hate those two.  They may be strong for saiyans, but I wish they had not sacrificed their brains for brawns."  Gohan muttered to himself while looking at the ground.

The other two saiyans with him snickered in agreement, "I know whatcha mean."  Karie, the female saiyan, said.

Gohan looked up and gave a small smile, "At least I have two commanders that do not rely on brawns." Gohan said.

Hakan frowned for a moment before he addressed Gohan, "I got a question, why are we even participating in this conflict?  I mean if we are facing a super saiyan then nothing we do, aside from perhaps a combined blast from the entire army, will even do anything to Brolly."

Gohan nodded, "I know, you are not there to take him on, you are there to distract him, to keep him for focusing his full attention on me."  Gohan said, "To be quite honest I hope those other two die in this conflict, I need capable commanders not morons, but with those two in the position, the only way into it is to over power them.  So far the only one who can do that is my mate, and she is not really into warfare."

Karie smiled and looked Gohan up and down slowly, "Videl sure is one likely saiyan to have gotten you. If I had known you were around I probably would have tried my hand at getting you."  She purred. "But that's in the past, so what is it exactly you want us to do?"

Gohan sighed and looked back at the two of them, "I really did not want to break this to you but… I want you to protect the other two legions.  I know those other two commanders are going to do something reckless, which will lead to a lot of dead and injured saiyans.  I want your legions to protect the remnants of theirs and to do what you can to aid myself, Vegeta and Kakkarot without getting directly involved.  I want to keep the casualties to a minimum."  Gohan said in a weary tone.

The two saiyans with him frowned a little but nodded their heads in accord, "As you wish Gohan. You know what, I think your pacifism is catching, ah well, I'll see you later.  I have to get my legion ready."  Karie said before she blasted away.

Hakan looked at Gohan and nodded his head as he spoke, "Yes, I'm glad you're in charge.  You at least know when to fight and when not to." And with that Hakan blasted off into the air heading in a different direction then Karie.

Gohan rubbed a hand through his hair and looked around at the auditorium and noticed a rather small person flying into the place.  Gohan frowned for a second before a smile lit his face up.  Gohan flew over towards the person and hovered beside her. "How is it going Pan?"  Gohan asked as he looked down at his daughter.

Pan smiled back up at her dad and jumped onto his chest, "DADDY!" Pan cried in joy as she hugged her father, "Mommy showed me how to find people witout seein em today.  I tried to find you and found you so here I am."  Pan said happily.

Gohan wrapped his arms around his daughter and floated down into one of the chairs in the auditorium. "How is mommy doing?"  Gohan asked.

"She's fine, but she wants to see you.  She is war… woorr… worried about you.  You didn't come home last night, where were yoo?"  Pan asked as she tugged on Gohan's armor.

"I am sorry Pan. Vegeta wanted to spar and decided to keep me up the entire night with it.  I was going to head home right afterwards but then we got a message from another planet, which I had to be to listen to.  I was then ordered to do the second part of my job.  I just finished that now and was about to head home when you arrived."  Gohan said as he ruffled Pan's hair.

Pan giggled as she moved her head around.  Gohan held onto Pan tighter and blasted out of the auditorium and headed home. After about ten minutes of flying Gohan arrived in the glade where his home was located and quickly landed.  Once his feet touched the ground Pan jumped out of his arms and raced into the house arms and hair flying out behind her.  Gohan smiled at the scene and walked into the house quickly spotted Videl standing in the middle of the room, hands on her hips glaring at him.

"Where have you been Gohan? If it weren't for the bond I wouldn't of had a clue about whether or not you were alright."  Videl said as she stomped over to stand in front of him.

Pan's head popped up over Videl's shoulder and giggled at her father causing the two of them to smile at her.  "Daddy was busy with work, that's what he told me."  Pan said happily.

Videl glared over at Gohan and growled, "I'll let you off this time Gohan, but you owe me for missing out on you last night."  Videl turned her head to regard Pan, "Sweety, why don't you go and play for awhile, me and daddy are going to be… busy for a few hours." Videl said with a smile.

"Okie!"  Pan said, oblivious to what Videl was hinting at.  Pan climbed up onto Videl's shoulder and jumped over onto her fathers head before she bolted out the door.

Videl watched Pan leave before she turned to look at Gohan with a little smile on her face, "Well dear, shall we get started?"  Videl asked as she grabbed Gohan's armor and dragged him upstairs.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning…

Gohan walked down the stairs of his home fully clothed in his saiyan battle armor with Videl close behind him. Gohan turned as he got to the door that leads from the house.

"Videl, I want you to stay here and look after Pan. I do not want to have to worry about you getting hurt." Gohan said in a serious tone.

Videl nodded her head, "I know, but I don't have to like it. Make sure you come home safely Gohan." Videl said as she gave him a kiss.

"Do not worry, I will, this should not be to hard, it is three super saiyans to one." Gohan said, "I love you and I will be back as soon as possible."

Gohan walked out of the house and quickly took to the air and headed towards the capital city where he could feel his father and Vegeta waiting for him. The ground went by in a blur as Gohan rushed across the sky and hovered before the gates of the city. Kakkarot and Vegeta were both waiting for him when he got there as well as Landyn and the entire royal elite guard.

"Hey Gohan, glad to have you here." Kakkarot said jovially as he floated over to hover beside his son.

Vegeta soon followed, "Hmph, you sure took your sweet time getting here. Not getting weaker are we?" Vegeta asked.

Gohan looked over at Vegeta and grinned, "Maybe, but I bet I am still much stronger then you." Gohan replied in response to Vegeta's jab.

Vegeta growled at Gohan but didn't respond. Soon after that a legion of saiyans appeared on the horizon and halted a few hundred meters away. One of the saiyans in the legion broke off from the rest and approached Gohan.

"I got my legion ready Gohan. Do you know when we expect to face this super saiyan?" Hakan asked.

Vegeta snorted, "He better arrive soon, I'm beginning to get impatient." Vegeta grumbled.

Hakan raised an eyebrow at Vegeta but didn't say anything as two more legions appeared and stopped about the same distance away from Gohan as the first. Nephyl and Ruon appeared beside Hakan and saluted Vegeta.

"We're here, like we were... ordered." Nephyl said in a growl.

Gohan frowned at him but didn't respond and just continued to wait for the last legion to appear. He didn't have to wait long as Karie appeared with her saiyans behind her.

"My men are ready Gohan, and I made sure they understood your... instructions from the other day." Karie said as she gave a smirk to Nephyl and Ruon.

The two men growled back at her wanting nothing more then to kill her but couldn't with Gohan there.

Gohan turned and shared a look with Vegeta and Kakkarot, "Well it appears as if we are ready, now all we need is for big, yellow and ugly to show up." Gohan said.

Vegeta gave Gohan a surprised look before a smirk crossed his face once again. "He better not keep us waiting. I've sent a message to our allies and they should be sending help. Some said they'd be here by this afternoon, not that there is much of a chance of there being anything for them to attack once they get here." Vegeta said with confidence.

All of a sudden Gohan's head shot up and his eyes took on a faraway look. "Well Vegeta... Looks like our waiting has ended, because he's here."

All of the saiyans tensed and excited whispers began to go back and forth between them. Gohan looked back down and at Vegeta, "I think now would be a good time to turn on the planetary defenses." Gohan said.

Vegeta shook his head negatively, "No way, I don't want the defenses to take him out. I want to take him out myself."

Gohan sighed and shook his head before Kakkarot said, "I can feel him, he's coming through the atmosphere now."

Vegeta grinned, "Well Kakkarot, Gohan, lead the way. We shouldn't be keeping the bastard waiting now should we?" Vegeta said as he powered up to just below super saiyan.

Gohan nodded and blasted through the sky, with Kakkarot beside him, in the direction that Brolly's ki was. Vegeta, Landyn, the royal guard and the army followed quickly behind him.

They were only flying a short distance before Kakkarot and Gohan stopped and looked almost directly above them. Vegeta came to a halt in front of them with the Royal guard behind. The army with the four commanders in front stopped behind the royal guard.

A few seconds later a flash of light was seen and Brolly appeared twenty feet in front of Vegeta with an insane grin on his face. Vegeta floated forward a few feet, "Hello, Brolly. You will die here today, by my hands." Vegeta said fiercely.

Brolly threw his head back and laughed. Vegeta's fists clenched in front of him and with a scream of rage he powered up into his super saiyan form. "Don't you dare laugh at me Brolly!" Vegeta growled.

Brolly brought his head down at the words and grinned evilly before his eyes lay upon Kakkarot. Something snapped within Brolly as he reared his head back and roared, "KAKKAROT!" Brolly's rage skyrocketed, and so did his power. The sky turned black as lightning began to strike Brolly. Brolly reared back even more and an explosion erupted from his body. When the light had died down Brolly had gone under a massive transformation. Brolly's muscles had doubled in size while all of his hair had spiked upwards and turned green, "KAKKAROT!" was roared again as his pure white eyes, that were filled with insane rage, regarded Kakkarot once more.

Kakkarot powered up into super saiyan as soon as he realized that Brolly's rage was directed towards him. Gohan gaped at Brolly's power for a second before he too powered up to his max, which caused his hair to elongate and spike up more wildly as his muscle mass to increase.

Just as Gohan finished powering up Brolly charged forward and slammed into Kakkarot. Kakkarot flew backwards only to be caught by Landyn. Vegeta roared and slammed a foot into the side of Brolly's head only to have him regard Vegeta for a second before he slapped him away.

Hundreds of thousands of blasts slammed into Brolly as Nephyl and Ruon attacked with their legions behind them. Brolly growled in annoyance and charged ahead, heedless of the attacks only to be met by Landyn and the royal guard as they sought to buy Kakkarot time to recover. Brolly flew let all their attacks hit him, not bothering to block, as he grabbed to nearest two saiyans and slammed their heads together. The saiyans died instantly as their skulls were compacted together and they dropped out of the sky. 

Brolly rocketed forward once more only to be met by a punch to the face by Kakkarot, which did absolutely nothing. Brolly punched Kakkarot in the stomach and kicked him towards the ground. A large blast hit him from behind, courtesy of Vegeta, which knocked him forward. Brolly growled and charged at Vegeta only to have Gohan slam a foot into the side of his. This time Brolly actually felt something as his head rocked to the side and his cheek started to bleed. Brolly turned to face Gohan only to get hit from both sides by Vegeta and Kakkarot as they both delivered dual double kicks to his sides.

Brolly formed two large blasts in his hands and slammed them into Vegeta's and Kakkarot's faces. The two super saiyans were blasted away from Brolly but were quickly caught by two of the elite guards. Brolly was about to attack Gohan when Ruon and Nephyl appeared in front of him.

"I don't think so big guy. We'll take you down, we don't need super saiyans. ALL RIGHT MEN! LET HIM HAVE IT!" Nephyl roared.

26,000 beams of energy slammed into Brolly as the combined might of both legions attacked at the same time. For a second it appeared as if the attack might work, but an instant later Brolly emerged from the blast zone and flew upwards. He reared back and roared in anger as he fired thousands upon thousands of energy blasts out from himself. The blast flew unerringly fast and accurate as they ripped through both legions. A few of the saiyans managed to dodge them but the majority of the saiyans were hit, with the lucky ones losing their lives instantly. Nephyl and Ruon gaped at Brolly in surprise and had no time to react as Brolly appeared in front of them. With a snarl Brolly gripped Nephyl's throat and began to squeeze. The saiyan tried to pry his arms from his next but to no avail.

Gohan came in and slammed a fist into Brolly's stomach, which caused him to grunt, but not more then that. Brolly used his other arm to bat Gohan away as he turned his attention back to Nephyl. A second later a large crack was heard as Nephyl's neck snapped and blood gushed from it. Brolly let go of the corpse before punching his hand through the already dead body. He tore the spine out of the corpse and slammed it into Ruon's eye before the saiyan could do anything. Ruon screamed in agony for a second before Brolly tore his head off. Both former commanders fell from the sky, dead.

Karie and Hakan looked away from the carnage and at one another, both suddenly glad Gohan had insisted that they stay out of the battle. "Well, we better get to work, there are still some saiyans that need to be helped." Karie said before she blasted off with her men behind her. Hakan only shook his head as he followed, still not believing what was happening.

Vegeta slammed both his fists onto Brolly's back and knocked him down a ways. Brolly growled and righted himself to stare at Vegeta just as Kakkarot rammed him from below with his head. The massive super saiyan yelled in pain for a moment before he turned around faster then was thought possible to knee Kakkarot in the face. Kakkarot's nose exploded as he was knocked away and was once again caught by an elite guard. Brolly was about to follow just as Landyn appeared to Brolly's side and fired his largest blast at him. Brolly caught the blast and threw it back and Landyn. Landyn didn't have time to react as his own attack slammed back into him. With a scream of agony Landyn was blasted across the sky and into the ground some distance away, bloody and near death.

All of a sudden Gohan appeared and slammed his elbow into Brolly's face causing his lip to split. Brolly snarled, grabbed Gohan's legs, flew down and slammed him into the ground. Brolly placed his boot on Gohan's face and began to grind it into the ground. Gohan yelled in pain until a boot slammed into the back of Brolly's head and knocked him off Gohan. Kakkarot flew up and away with Brolly close behind.

Kakkarot stopped all of a sudden and grinned at Brolly as he appeared in front of him. "Surprise!" Kakkarot said as he zipped to the side quickly.

"FINAL FLASH!" Vegeta roared, from his place behind Kakkarot, as his special attack erupted from his hands and slammed into Brolly.

The beam carried Brolly away from Vegeta for a few seconds before it suddenly halted and reversed direction. Vegeta snarled and tried to push more of his energy into the beam but to no avail. All of a sudden Gohan appeared beside him, his face bloody.

"Need help?" Gohan asked and without waiting for a response he reared his hands above his head and shouted, "MASENKO-HA!" and a massive yellow beam of energy was released from his hands to join with Vegeta's energy wave.

Gohan's beam flowed through Vegeta's and slammed into Brolly. The combined force of the two waves carried Brolly away from both of them before it exploded. Gohan and Vegeta lowered their arms, both tired from their exertion.

"Don't do that again Gohan. I can take care of myself." Vegeta said with a snarl.

Gohan glared at Vegeta, "I do not care if you can or not. This guy is to big for anyone of us alone, you know that, so stop being so stubborn and be glad that I helped because you would probably be six feet under by now if I did not." Gohan snarled.

Vegeta looked on at Gohan in surprise so wasn't prepared when a fist slammed into his cheek. Vegeta cried out as he flew backwards only to feel a foot slam into his head. Vegeta spiraled downwards and cratered into the ground. Gohan looked at Brolly in surprise, how!? He wondered to himself before he was put on the defensive as Brolly attacked him with a vengeance.

Kakkarot flew down beside Gohan and started attacking Brolly to try to get his full attention away from Gohan. The father and son combo went all out on Brolly throwing punches and kicks at him from all directions not causing much damage but managing to put Brolly on the defensive. Brolly snarled all of a sudden and slammed his fist through Kakkarot's defenses and into his stomach causing the other saiyan to double over. Gohan's fist slammed into Brolly's face rocking the larger saiyan's head back. Gohan quickly followed the punch with a large blast to the chest and a kick throwing the larger saiyan away.

Kakkarot straighten as he caught his breath back and smiled thankfully at Gohan who was currently glaring at Brolly. Vegeta suddenly appeared beside Gohan and mimicked Gohan's glare.

Brolly suddenly grinned viciously and held his hands above his head. A ball of energy appeared above them and began to grow at a rapid pace. Gohan's eyes widen as he realized what Brolly was intending to do, "HE'S GOING TO TRY AND DESTROY THE PLANET!" Gohan roared as he blasted forward and began to rapidly punch Brolly in the face and chest only to get a kick in the face for his efforts.  Gohan flew back and into an on coming Vegeta. Both saiyans fell from the sky leaving Kakkarot alone with Brolly. 

Kakkarot's eyes widen as he spotted a massive wave of ionized particles heading directly for Brolly. Kakkarot quickly blasted away and reached Vegeta just as the ion-beam smashed into Brolly's back and exploded violently. The entire planet shuddered under the impact despite the fact it took place high above it. The shockwave that emanated from the explosion threw the three super saiyans to the ground. A few seconds later a second explosion rocked the planet, this one even bigger as Brolly's planet killer blast detonated as he lost his hold on it. Another shockwave rippled out from Brolly that shook the planet to its core.

After the smoke cleared Brolly floated there in the air, the smirk no longer gracing his face. Brolly turned and looked in the direction of the ion-beam and growled. With a sonic boom Brolly rocketed in the direction of the beam and appeared in a tiny, forested valley, with a single spire poking out of the forest with a huge ion cannon mounted to the top of it, still smoking from its first shot.

--------------------------------

Inside the fort...

Trunks looked over at Goten and began to panic, "AHHH! HE'S HEADING IN THIS DIRECTION!" Trunks yelled as he ran around the control room and turned on all of the automatic defenses.

Goten looked up at Trunks, "Shouldn't we abandon base? Like, I mean if my big brother can't take him, what chance do we have?" Goten asked.

Trunks looked over at Goten and calmed down a little, "Don't worry, we got a defense grid and a shield that he has to get through. We may take him down yet." Trunks said as he initiated the defense grid.

"Aright! Let's show this big bully what we can do!" Goten said as he rushed to activate the shield around the fort.

Trunks watched the main monitored and began to rapidly press buttons, "Here he comes Goten, let's do this."  Trunks said excitedly.

The weapons on the fort started to open fire at Brolly as he entered the valley.  Hundreds of sentry turrets all fired at once and covered the sky with explosions.  Brolly flew through all of it ignoring the blasts as if they were inconsequential, because to him they were.  Brolly halted just above the spire and looked down upon it.

Trunks turned to Goten, "AHH!!! HE'S ABOVE US! FIRE THE ION CANNON!"  Trunks yelled.

"I CAN'T ITS NOT COOLED DOWN YET!!"  Goten yelled and began to run around.

Trunks looked at the main screen and saw Brolly powering up again, "OH SHIT ABANDON BASE HE'S GONNA NUKE US!!"  Trunks yelled as he bolted for the elevator.  Goten didn't waste any breath and zipped after Trunks.  Once both of them were in the elevator Trunks pressed the button just as fire consumed everything.

Brolly watched in satisfaction as the valley went up in a huge explosion.  When the explosion had finished all that remained of the valley was a barren crater that went down further then the valley used to be.  The entire valley had been destroyed, the forest and the fort.  Scorched marks wound their ways up the sides of the mountains.  Not a thing lived in the valley anymore.  Nothing survived that explosion.

To be continued…

Whew, another chapter, this one a little longer, well actually probably a lot longer then my other ones.  I kinda liked writing this one, hehe.  Well this one didn't end up to bloody, but the next one… oh there are gonna be some people flaming me about it, hehe.

Alright, one thing.  You may have noticed that Vegeta seems a bit melodramatic compared to what he was in the series.  Well 2 things about that.  1 This isn't the series, this is my story, and in my story he's how I want him to be.  Secondly think about what Vegeta would be like if he had grown up normally.  Sure Frieza existed in my AU but he didn't have any major impact on Vegeta's life so instead of living for 20 years under Frieza's tortuous rule, he grew up the normal way so he isn't nearly as cold as he would normally be.  Another thing is that Gohan acts more saiyan in my story then he does in the series, well think about it, he grew up with saiyans all around him, it doesn't matter who his parents were, they're gonna rub off at least a little on him.

Also if you noticed in my previous chapters/story it was all Gohan, Gohan and more Gohan.  I think I'm gonna throw in some goten/trunks and some of the other characters as well.  It makes it easier to write the story and allows me to make it longer and more interesting.

Anyways, hope you guys enjoy the chapter.  I know I enjoyed writing it.  As with my last chapter, I haven't got a clue when my next chapter will be out.  All depends on my motivation and time.


	6. Chapter 5: Hope Returns

                                                                         Chapter 5: Hope Returns

Vegeta and Kakkarot stared in the direction Brolly had went in horror.  They knew what lay over there, and by the explosion that lit the sky they knew what happened.

"NO!  GOTEN!"  Kakkarot yelled as he blasted from the ground and towards Brolly.  Vegeta followed Kakkarot closely, a look of fear and rage etched on his face.  The royal elite guard, despite being leaderless, followed their king.

Gohan watched as the other two left, "Goten?!  Oh shit, his fort!"  Gohan blasted up and was about to follow his father but Karie appeared in front of him.

"Get out of my way, I have to check on my brother!"  Gohan snarled at Karie.

She shook her head, "We need you here Gohan.  You have men to command and take care of.  You may not know it, but all of them, well the ones still alive, look to you for support.  If you leave them…" Karie trailed off.

"But you don't understand!  My brother could be DEAD!"  Gohan yelled at her.

"And I know how you feel!  I lost many comrades today Gohan, but you have an army to look after!" Karie said with determination, "Goten is just one person.  He may be dear to you, but he's just one person compared to the thousands of others that depend on you."  

Gohan sighed and turned around, "I hate this, but you are right.  I should see to my men first…" Gohan said sadly, not noticing the look of pity Karie gave him. "Let's get this over with quickly, I need to follow my father."  And with that Gohan flew off towards his men.  Karie followed quickly behind him.

As Gohan approached the largest group of saiyans Hakan flew out from the crowd to meet him.  "Damn Brolly, nothing we did to him affected him even the slightest.  I saw your fight with that brute.  You barely even harmed him.  Only that last beam did anything to… to that thing."  Hakan spit the last word out with disgust.

"Shut up Hakan, lets get things organized fast.  I have somewhere to be and I'm already late as it is."  Gohan snarled out at Hakan.

Hakan reeled back from the words, surprised at the tone.  "His brother…" Karie started but was cut off by a glare from Gohan.  Hakan looked in the direction that Vegeta had left in and nodded.  The rest of the saiyans started to gather around Gohan and the two remaining commanders.

"Well then, lets get things organized."  Hakan said, "The other two commanders are dead, but you saw that, and most of their legions have been annihilated.  There are no more then several hundred from both legions combined still alive, and of those several hundred very few can actually fight.  Brolly did a number on those men.  Both Karie's legions and mine are unharmed as of yet.  Thanks to your order to stay out of the battle."

Gohan nodded and addressed all the saiyans present, "I am sorry to have brought you men to this… slaughter.  It appears that even with your help that me, my father and the king could do very little to Brolly."  Gohan said, his voice turning venomous as he said that last word, "You have all witnessed first hand what happened here, and you all know there is nothing you can do.  I am going to follow my father now.  I have a score to settle with Brolly…  I need some of you to stay behind with the wounded to bring them to the regeneration chambers.  As for the rest of you, you may do as you wish."  Gohan turned away from the gathered saiyans and blasted off and to the distant horizon as he went after his father and Vegeta.

Karie and Hakan looked at one another for a second before Karie spoke up, "I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm not going to lay down and die.  Gohan may have said we can't harm Brolly, but I will die before I give up."  Karie blasted into the air and followed Gohan.

Hakan shook his head and muttered something about crazy women before he too took to the air and followed Gohan.  Most of the gathered saiyans took to the air and followed their commanders.  They were in full agreement, each and every one of them.  They were not going to lie down and die without a fight.  A few saiyans did stay behind to follow Gohan's order to help the wounded saiyans to the nearest city and their regeneration chambers.

--------------------------------

Elsewhere…

Kakkarot tore through the air leaving a sonic boom in his wake.  The look on his face could kill if facial expressions could be used to attack.  Vegeta was much the same as he flew right beside Kakkarot.  Both saiyans were going full out.  The saiyan elite guard tried to keep up but they steadily fell further and further behind until it came to the point where they were no longer visible to the two super saiyans.  The only thing the elite guards had to go upon were the twin yellow glows on the horizon.

When Kakkarot and Vegeta entered the valley Brolly was nowhere to be seen.  The devastation wrought by the behemoth was clear though, leaving no doubt the target and the intent the blast.  Kakkarot tried to search for the life force of his son and the prince but to no avail.  Vegeta attempted the same thing and didn't come up with anything more then Kakkarot.  Vegeta stared down at the valley and fought down fear and anger as they sought to overwhelm him.  Kakkarot's face became totally devoid of expression as he raised his head and began to feel for Brolly's life force.  He finally found it heading south at an extremely fast pace.  Kakkarot blasted south causing Vegeta to look up.  Vegeta, seeing that Kakkarot was on to something, blasted after him just as the royal elite guard caught up to them.  The guards just looked at one another and sighed collectively as they rushed off again to protect their king.

As Kakkarot and Vegeta left the mountain range and flew over a vast plain they could see a city in the distance; a city with Brolly staring down at it and laughing as the saiyans sought to protect their homes.

"BROLLY!"  Was roared from the mouths of the two super saiyans as they both planted their feet into Brolly's back at the same time.  Brolly rocked forward as he yelled in pain for a second before he flipped over to stare at the two super saiyans.

"You killed Goten!  YOU KILLED MY SON!"  Kakkarot roared at Brolly, anger vivid on his face.

Brolly threw his head back and laughed, "Oh!  You mean those two pathetic creatures in that little tower were your sons?"  Brolly said and began to laugh even harder at the expression on Vegeta and Kakkarot's faces.

Kakkarot snarled before he roared in rage.  The sky darkened as lightning started to slam in Kakkarot, feeding his power.  Kakkarot's hair became more wild and longer as his muscles doubled in size.  A shockwave rippled out of him and an explosion occurred.  Kakkarot stared at Brolly in rage as he finished his ascension to Ultra Super Saiyan.  "YOU WILL PAY!"  Kakkarot roared as he zipped forward and slammed a boot into Brolly's chin, knocking him back several feet.

_Trunks… my son… what have you done… what has… Brolly done to you… Brolly…  Brolly!  BROLLY!_ "BROLLY!" Vegeta roared as arched backwards and screamed in rage.  Once again the sky darkened and lightning flashed, but this time into Vegeta.  Vegeta roared in rage as he too joined Kakkarot and his son at the Ultra state.

Brolly just smirked at the two saiyans but before he could begin to pound on them the entire royal guard slammed into him.  All of the guards fought him at the same time.  Brolly snarled in annoyance before he went into action.  Forward Brolly's hands shot as he grabbed the first guard in sight.  He tore the guards arms off, turned and slammed them through the body of a second saiyan.  Brolly kicked the third a little too hard and slammed his foot all the way through the poor guards chest.  Brolly wasn't deterred by this and used the unlucky saiyan as a boot.  The massive saiyan fired a blast behind him and incinerated yet another guard before he made quick work of the rest.  Blood splattered through the air as the remaining nine guards from the first fight died.  Within seconds it was all over.  Brolly had annihilated the entire royal elite guard.  The body impaled on the behemoth's foot slowly slid off with a sickening squelching sound before it fell from the sky like the rest.

The massive super saiyan turned to once again regard Kakkarot and Vegeta, a small smile on his face.  He was covered in blood from the slaughtered saiyans and he didn't seem to mind one bit.  Kakkarot and Vegeta didn't say anything as they charged Brolly together.  A shockwave rippled out from the impact zone as Vegeta and Kakkarot fell a little ways before they stopped themselves and once again charged Brolly.

Vegeta swung a fist at Brolly's face, which was blocked and followed up by kick.  Before the kick could hit Vegeta, Kakkarot slammed his knee into the offending leg and a fist into his ribs.  Brolly brought his elbow down on Kakkarot's head and head butted Vegeta.  Vegeta's head and body rocked back but he slammed his foot into Brolly's chin causing spit to fly as Kakkarot rushed in to hammer yet another fist into the behemoth's stomach.  Brolly grabbed Vegeta's foot, flew back a few feet and swung the super saiyan into Kakkarot before he did a quick spin as he tossed the king at the nearby city.

Vegeta smashed through slammed into one of the buildings in the city and continued through it and out the other side into the ground.  Vegeta looked up to see a large blast heading his way and quickly moved out of the way just in time.  That couldn't be said for the unlucky saiyans that were near Vegeta.  Vegeta snarled and blasted off the ground and towards the massive saiyan, leaving a small crater as he did that.

While Brolly had his attention on Vegeta, Kakkarot cupped his hands and began to gather energy.

"Ka… Me…"

Energy swirled into the cups of Kakkarot's hands as Brolly finished forming his energy blast.

"Ha… Me…"

A ball of blue energy appeared in Kakkarot's hands as energy began to gather faster and faster.  The blast left Brolly's hand and slammed into the city.

"**HA!**" Kakkarot yelled as he unleashed his energy wave at Brolly just as he turned around to look at Kakkarot.

Brolly didn't have time to react before the energy wave engulfed him.  With a roar of pain Brolly crossed his arms and braced himself from within the beam.  With a second roar he erected a shield around him that blocked the energy wave.

"**FINAL FLASH!**"

"**MASENKO-HA!**"

Two more energy waves slammed into Brolly, one from the south and one from the north that formed a T in the sky.  There was a bulge at the center of the top of the T where Brolly tried to keep the waves from over-coming him.  The saiyans there were assigned to defend the city rushed out and added their own energy attacks to those of the three super saiyans in an attempt to over power Brolly's shield and destroy the saiyan.

Brolly snarled under the combined might of all the attacks centered on him as his shield began to shrink around him.  Brolly wasn't happy that the saiyans had managed to put him in this situation, and shifted his form of defense.  With a roar that shook the ground Brolly arched backwards and powered up more.  A jewel in a pendant on his neck glowed with a brilliant cyan light as Brolly's speed and strength increased yet again.  Brolly changed his shield and lashed out with it.  The shield formed spikes that elongated and shot out towards all the offending saiyans… through their energy waves.   Gohan and Vegeta saw what was coming and zipped out of the way as the shield sliced through where they were standing.  Kakkarot and the rest were not as lucky.  The shield stabbed through Kakkarot's chest, just below the ribs at the oblique muscles, tearing them out as Kakkarot attempted to dodge the attack.  The rest of the saiyans couldn't move as fast and were stabbed through the center of their chests.  All of the impaled saiyans screamed in agony as the shield split once again, forming spikes at the end of the spikes and shooting through various parts of their bodies.

When the energy waves ceased their attacks, and the saiyans finished dieing on Brolly's shield, Brolly lowered the shield and laughed again.  Kakkarot held his ruined side as blood gushed out of the non-fatal but life threatening wound.  Gohan stared at the massacre in horror and yelled over at Vegeta.  "GET MY FATHER OUT OF HERE!  HE WON'T MAKE IT IF HE DOESN'T GET HELP!  I'LL HOLD BROLLY OFF!  I'M STILL THE STRONGEST OF US!"

Vegeta snarled and was about to snap at Gohan but was stopped as slammed into the ground unconscious.  _Kakkarot, I'll make you pay for making me miss the fight of my life_, Vegeta thought to himself as he flew down to pick Kakkarot up.  Brolly was about to chase and kill Kakkarot but was interrupted as Gohan slammed both of his feet into Brolly's side sending him careening into the city below.  Vegeta took the opportunity to leave with Kakkarot as the part of the city that Brolly had slammed into disappeared. Brolly howled in anger and flew up to attack Gohan.  Gohan dashed down and met Brolly at the halfway point and a shockwave exploded out from them as their fists met.

Gohan threw both his fists at Brolly who caught them both and grinned.  A small crack was heard as Brolly began to squeeze the hands.  Gohan snarled and slammed both his feet into the other saiyans chest.  Brolly, caught off guard, doubled over a little and loosened his grip.  Gohan took the opportunity to back away from Brolly.  An idea came to Gohan's mind and he smirked at Brolly.  Gohan gave out a yell and bent over as a replicate of him burst out from his back and detached himself from the first Gohan.  Both Gohan's looked at one another and smiled before they regarded Brolly.  Brolly's was not phased by the trick and quickly attacked.

Both Gohan's charged forward to meet him.  Shockwaves erupted from the fighting zone as the three combatants dueled it out.  By this time both Gohan's and Brolly were fighting directly over the devastated city.  Buildings cracked under the force of the shockwaves alone that emanated from the two.  Brolly picked the pace up and began to hammer punches into both Gohan's at the same time.  Brolly slammed a fist into the original Gohan and bicycle kicked him into the street below.  The second Gohan sought to take advantage of the divergence of attention but Brolly wasn't caught by surprise.  He caught the second Gohan's oncoming fist and slammed a hand into his stomach.  Brolly grabbed Gohan's legs, flew towards the street and slammed him into the one in the street.  The second Gohan slipped back into the first as the original Gohan groaned and tried to get up.

All Gohan saw was Brolly leering down at him before a massive yellow beam flew just over his head and knocked the behemoth away from him.  Gohan looked behind him and the sight made his eyes widen.

"What are you doing here!?"  Gohan yelled at Karie, Hakan and the assembled saiyans.

Karie flew over and helped Gohan off the ground, "Well, you may be a good general, but you don't know saiyans very well.  We'd rather die fighting then go home and wonder if our planet is going to blow up in the next few minutes."  Karie said to Gohan, a grim expression on her face gave Gohan the impression that she was serious, dead serious.

Gohan nodded and looked back at Brolly who was slowly walking towards him, "My father is out of the fight.  Brolly mangled him real bad and Vegeta is out until he can get Kakkarot to a regeneration chamber."  Gohan said, "Until Vegeta gets back, it'll be up to us to hold him here and prevent him from destroying anything else."

Karie nodded and glared at Brolly, "Let's get the bastard, this is my home town, and I won't let him do what he pleases to it."  Karie growled out and prepared for the onslaught.

Gohan blasted towards Brolly and slid under his legs before he twirled around and tripped him.  Before Brolly could hit the ground Hakan and Karie zipped forward and slammed their feet into Brolly's face.  Brolly growled in annoyance before thousands of energy waves slammed into his back and hammered him into the ground.  Gohan jumped into the air before he came back down and kneed Brolly in the base of his back.  Brolly brought his legs up and around to grasp Gohan's neck and slam his head into the ground.  Brolly jumped up and smacked Karie away before he smashed his fist onto the top of Hakan's head and shoving it into his body.  Blood spurted out from the top of his head as Hakan's brains were splattered and his neck and skull bones shattered.  Brolly grabbed the corpse and threw it at Gohan as he picked himself off the ground.

Brolly jumped into the air and flew at the offending legions.  Karie picked herself off the ground and watched in horror as Brolly slaughtered her entire legion, along with Hakan's and the remnants of the first two.  Not one saiyan legionnaire survived the attack and the sky literally rained blood.  Brolly looked down at Gohan and began to laugh and erected an aura around him, evaporating the blood that covered his body.  Brolly grinned at Gohan and rocketed through the air at him.  Gohan flew up to meet him but the two were interrupted by an earth-shaking scream.

Karie's face contorted and transformed as she watched the blood fall from the sky onto the ruined city.  "You… YOU BASTARD!"  Karie screamed, and screamed even louder as the ground around her began to shake.  Karie's hair stood up and turned yellow as her eyes turned teal with murderous hate reflected within them.  "YOU AREN'T A SAIYAN!  YOU'RE AN ANIMAL!"  Karie screamed out and fired a massive energy wave at Brolly.  Brolly raised his arms just in time to block the attack but the force behind it caused him to grunt and leave himself totally unguarded to Gohan.

Who took full advantage of the situation by slamming a ki infused fist into Brolly's back.  The hit caused Brolly to rock forward and head first into the energy wave.  Gohan moved to the side as Brolly flew by him, fully engulfed and unprotected in the beam.  Karie carried the beam over and out of the city before she turned it and slammed it into the ground.  An explosion occurred and a massive crater formed with Brolly lying in the center.  Gohan flew down to Karie only to have her to look at him with the same venom as she did Brolly.

"Calm down Karie, or you won't be able to control the power."  Gohan said roughly.

Karie just snarled at Gohan and prepared to attack him.  "I SAID CALM DOWN!  THE SAME THING HAPPENED TO ME!"  Gohan roared, "YOU WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO FULLY UTILIZE YOUR POTENTIAL AS A SUPER SAIYAN IF YOU LET RAGE OVERULE YOUR JUDGEMENT!" 

Karie visibly trembled before she dropped to the ground, "He… He killed them all brutally, that wasn't a fight to the death… That was a slaughter...  What kind… of monster is he?"  Karie sobbed out.

Gohan put a hand on her shoulder, "It's alright and I feel the same way…  They were my responsibility just as much as they were yours…  Now, lets teach this muscle bound freak a lesson."  Gohan gently said.

Karie nodded and stood up, "Let's teach him not to mess with Planet Vegeta!"  Karie said with determination in her voice.

Gohan took off into the air only to be met by Brolly as he delivered a punch to Gohan's face.  Gohan's head rocked backwards as his nose broke but Brolly couldn't follow it up as Karie attacked him with a vengeance.  Brolly was put on the defensive for a bit before he organized himself and focused fully on Karie.  Gohan hit Brolly from the side and once again put him on the defensive as Karie and Gohan threw punches and kicks faster then Brolly could block.  The huge saiyan flew back a few feet before he gathered a monstrous blast in his hands.  Before Gohan or Karie could do anything Brolly released the blast, which slammed into both super saiyans.  The blast carried the two for a long ways before it finally exploded.  The explosion knocked Gohan out, causing him to fall out of ultra super saiyan into regular and sent both him and Karie flying over the mountain range and into the forest a fair distance away from it.

While the two were air born Brolly regarded the devastated city and grinned at the few saiyans that were left alive.  The massive saiyan raised his arm and let out a shout.  The entire city erupted into a dome of golden energy, which exploded into a massive mushroom cloud.  When the smoke cleared, the city no longer existed.

The two saiyans that fought Brolly at the end flew down and slammed into the ground.  Karie felt something snap in her arm and ribs as she bounced and skidded through the forest.  Gohan faired much worse because he was unconscious.  When he landed both his legs crumpled under him causing him to slide through the forest, through several trees, and breaking multiple ribs, his left arm and snapping several tendons in his body.

Karie slowly got off the ground and hobbled over to Gohan.  "What a mess we got ourselves into.  I hope someone lives near here."  Karie said to the unconscious Gohan.  The female super saiyan raised her head and searched for strong life forces hoping to find saiyans and surprisingly found several.  One of the life forces was rapidly moving in her direction while the others were off in the distance.

Karie crouched in the shadows of the trees, prepared to ambush the oncoming entity.  Karie tensed as the being got closer and closer to her position and was slightly unnerved by the fact that it seemed to know directly where they were.  Soon the person was visible above the treetops and Karie ready a blast before she heard a gasp escape from the person and recognized it as a saiyan by the tail flowing behind it.  The unknown saiyan rushed down to the ground and ran over to Gohan.

"GOHAN!"  A distinctly feminine voice issued from the saiyan as she gathered the downed saiyan into her arms.  "What…  What happened to you?  How could anything do this to you?"  The saiyan sobbed as she buried her face into Gohan's bloodied shoulder.

Karie stood up and left the cover of the trees.  If the saiyan that had arrived cared this much for her superior, then she obviously wasn't an enemy.  "Umm…" Karie started but stopped as the saiyan whipped her head around and glared at Karie.

 "Who are you, what are you doing here and did you do this to my mate?"  The saiyan snapped out.

Karie stared at shock before recognizing the saiyan as Videl, Gohan's mate, "No, no, I didn't do this."  Karie said as she tried to pacify the agitated Videl, "We were fighting this monstrously powerful saiyan that went by the name of… Brolly!"  Karie practically spat out the last word as she said it, "I'm commander Karie, one of the commanders under Gohan's command.  Brolly tore my city apart along with my entire legion…  Brolly blasted us away like we were nothing…  There isn't anyone left with the power to stop him, at least not anyone on this planet."  Karie said sadly.

"Shut up!  You don't know my Gohan like I do.  He'll find a way to beat him, just like he beat Thraknor, Frieza and her entire family."  Videl said before she gently picked Gohan up in her arms.  "Since I can sense a powerful force far away and all life disappearing where ever it goes I'll believe you for now."  Videl continued, "But I have to fix Gohan.  I have a second regeneration chamber at my place that you can use.  Now if you'll follow me."  And with that Videl took off into the air and headed for home, not waiting to see if Karie would follow.

Karie quickly caught up but the duo hadn't gone far when a tremor shook the forest.  The two female saiyans looked behind them and witnessed a large glow on the horizon that faded slowly.  Videl sadly shook her head as she felt over 300,000 life forces extinguish in a second.  The two continued on their flight over the forest and eventually flew over a familiar glade.  Videl float down to the ground and quickly, but carefully, rushed down the path and into the house.  Karie followed, albeit more slowly, and noticed a small child chase after Videl.

"Mommy! Mommy!  What happened to daddy?"  Pan asked innocently as she watched Videl strip Gohan, hook him up to the regeneration chamber and activate the healing process.

Videl turned to Pan and picked her up.  "It's ok Panny, your daddy is going to be just fine."  Videl said as she hugged her daughter, "He just had an… accident with a really mean man and needs to recover."  Videl said gently.

"Oh…  But I've never seen daddy so beat up before."  Pan said as she looked at her father in the regeneration chamber.

"The big bad man that daddy was with didn't want to play nice.  Your dad wasn't prepared and so he got hurt more then he normally would have."  Videl said to Pan as she tried to convince herself as much as Pan.

Karie appeared in the doorway and leaned upon the frame as she held her broken arm, "Umm…  I think I might take you up on that offer for the regeneration chamber."  Karie said before she fell forward, falling out of super saiyan.

Videl set Pan down on the couch and rushed over to Karie and carried the bleeding saiyan to the second regeneration chamber.  As with Gohan she stripped her and then hooked her up to the regeneration chamber before activating it.

Pan rushed up to the second regeneration chamber and peered inside, "Whose she mommy?"  Pan asked curiously.

"Just one of Gohan's subordinates… Well…  Your father tells her what to do and she does it.  She also happens to be a super saiyan."  Videl confided, saying the last part with a bit of envy in her voice.

"Oh… Okay I'm gonna go outside and play now mommy."  Pan said.

"No, wait Pa…" Videl never got to finish as Pan scooted outside, "…n.  It's not… safe anymore."  Videl said sadly and kept an eye on her mate and a reading on her daughter.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

While Karie and Gohan were flying over the mountain range due to Brolly's blast…

Vegeta touched down at the palace gates only to see that someone was waiting for him, several someone's actually.  Several people walked up to the battered Vegeta and bowed to him.  There were three of them in total, the first was white and had white scales covering his body.  A white tail and two white bat wings jutted from his back and he was fully clothed in battle armor.  The second person had green skin and black hair.  This one was a female, which was obvious from the two small breasts that adorned the chest, and she looked at Vegeta with completely black eyes with tiny pinpoints of red in them.  The last one's race and gender was impossible to tell as he stood eight feet tall and fully decked out in power armor.  The armor was pure black and covered the entire body.  The mask covering the face had a filtration system on it, which allowed the person to function normally on any planet with any climate.  The first two people didn't carry any visible weapons, which didn't mean they had none on them.  The last person's weapon was obvious from the massive gatling laser cannon strapped to the creature's right arm and the pulse rifles strapped to his back.

The female spoke for the three people, "We've come like you've asked King Vegeta.  My name is Vil'Tani."  Vil'Tani gestured to the man on her right, "He's Aoria." She gestured her other hand to the massively armored creature behind her, "And he… well I think it's a he judging by all the weapons, is Horial.  Our leaders told us to take our forces and bring them here; we're all you are going to get, well from our civilizations at least.  We've brought all the military power that our civilizations could muster.  In total we have 117 starships, 3 flag ships, several thousand fighters and approximately 700,000 ground troops."  Vil'Tani paused for a moment before she phrased her question, "How is the situation here?"

Vegeta snarled and pointed at Kakkarot, "He's a very good indication of our situation.  Take one good look at him and believe me when I say he's lucky.  There is a monster on the loose on this planet.  He may look like a saiyan, but that's only on the outside."  Vegeta grumbled for a second, "Now I'll be right back, I have to make sure this idiot doesn't die on me.  There aren't enough super saiyans around for me to let this one die.  I need a good sparing partner when this is all over, not to mention I'm missed the best fight of my life."  Vegeta said and walked past the three alien generals.

Vil'Tani and Aoria exchanged glances as they noticed the huge gaping hole in Kakkarot's side, the same thoughts going through both heads.  What kind of creature could wreck a super saiyan like that?  The only indication that Horial noticed the bleeding saiyan was by the fact his hands had formed fists.  The three of them quickly followed Vegeta, not wanting him to get to far ahead of them.

Once Vegeta got Kakkarot set up in a regeneration chamber he went to his study with the three generals in tow behind him.  When they got into the study Vegeta took his normal seat and beckoned for the others to take a chair.  Vil'Tani and Aoria both took one but Horial just leaned against the bookshelf. 

Vegeta took a deep breath to settle himself down from the days events so he could think clearly, "Alright, this is the actual situation.  A saiyan that we… exiled a long time ago has come back to haunt us.  Only now he is unlike anything we've ever seen before.  He is a super saiyan that is for sure…  But he beat me, Kakkarot and Gohan into the ground.  Not only did he beat us, but he beat us badly, and took out several thousand saiyans at the same time."  Vegeta paused for a second as he gauged the reactions of the people in the room.  No emotion was shown by Horial, but that wasn't anything new, Vil'Tani looked a little surprised, but Aoria was in shock, "When I left with Kakkarot Gohan decided to take Brolly on, to buy me time to get his father back here.  Judging by the fact I can barely feel his life force and its no where near Brolly that he was severely beaten and is currently somewhere far from Brolly.  Brolly on the other hand is currently massacring my people.  City by city."

Vegeta looked more closely at Vil'Tani, "I may not be an expert on your race but…  Aren't you a little young to be a general?"  Vegeta asked curiously.

Vil'Tani faced became flushed due to anger and embarrassment, "This isn't the time for this Vegeta.  Yes I am young, but that doesn't mean I can't out general everyone."  Vil'Tani said, more then slightly upset, "Now do you have a map of the planet or should I just have Aoria create one for you?"  Vil'Tani growled out.

Vegeta snickered for a second before he got up and grabbed a map case from a shelf behind him.  He carried it back over to the desk and unrolled it.  Vegeta clipped the corners of the map to the edges of the desk to prevent it from rolling back up again and leaned over it.  Aoria and Vil'Tani soon followed suit and even Horial left his position against the shelf to take part in the discussion.

Vegeta lifted his head and felt around for Brolly and caught his ki signature far to the east.  Vegeta nodded thoughtfully for a second before he jabbed a finger at a spot on the map, "This is where Brolly currently is.  Judging by his location and speed he should reach the next city within a half hour."  Vegeta said and moved his finger to a city a little further east of the first spot, "We should strike him when he gets there, all of us at…" Vegeta started to say but Vil'Tani shook her head.

"That wouldn't work Vegeta.  No disrespect but from what I've gotten from what you've told us, all out assaults haven't worked so lets do something else."  Vil'Tani said and looked up at Vegeta who nodded her on, "Well how I see it is that nothing we do will be in time to save that city, at least nothing that will be helpful in the long run.  I think we should play a delaying action until Gohan and Kakkarot are better.  If we have them there then Brolly wouldn't be able to concentrate on the normal troops which, from what you've said, are almost nothing to him."  Vil'Tani stopped as Horial grunted in disagreement, "What is it?"

Horial spoke up in a feminine voice, "My troops aren't normal troops.  With our armor we can take more then Vegeta's saiyans, and with our fire power we can deal more damage then they can."  Horial said, "We also have a few… surprises that no one has seen yet.  We may not be equal to super saiyans, but my men and I could easily supply adequate fire power to do serious damage to this saiyan."

Vil'Tani shook her head, "That's just it.  You're no match for super saiyans, and this creature we are fighting far out-class the super saiyans.  I don't doubt that you'll be able to deal him harm, but you'll need the right opening to do it." Vil'Tani said and looked back at Vegeta, "Do you know how long it will be until Kakkarot and Gohan are fit enough to fight?"

Vegeta grumbled something about people ordering him around today and looked up at Vil'Tani before he responded, "I don't know about Gohan.  He's at his own house so he'll be in the best regeneration chambers but…  I don't know how badly he was hurt.  He could be anywhere from thirty minutes to six hours.  As for Kakkarot, well he'll be fine in about two."  Vegeta finished and looked down at the map, "Judging by how fast Brolly is moving… over half the population of the planet would be gone within six hours."

Vil'Tani nodded thoughtfully for a second before Aoria spoke up, "How fast is Brolly?  Like if we faced him at his fastest, what speed do you suppose he could travel?"

"Fast, very fast.  So fast in fact that he crossed four solar systems in two days."  Vegeta said but paused for a second, "But I don't know if he used something else to make him go through space that fast.  I've personally seen, well more felt, him at 20-30 times the speed of sound."

Vil'Tani and Aoria exchanged a set of surprised looks, "Then I don't think it would be a prudent course of action to engage the full might of our troops until we strike the final blow."  Aoria confided.

Vil'Tani nodded, "This is how I see it.  We wait and gather Gohan and Kakkarot so they can help us.  When he goes to attack one of the cities we'll have you three there waiting for him.  You three will engage him in combat while Aoria's psychics try to slow and/or disable his movement.  At the time you three should blast him with your strongest attacks."  Vil'Tani broke off and pointed at Horial, "Your people will come next.  Your men will come at Brolly from two sides and blast him with whatever firepower you have.  My men and I will cover the other two sides." She broke of again to look at Aoria, "Your people will be on all sides providing cover.  I know a little about your people, and from what I've read they are better at defensive combat then offensive, so that's what your role will be.  We'll concentrate our firepower and try to get Brolly into space where we will continue to pound him with our attacks.  At the distance we'll be doing significantly less damage to him but that doesn't matter.  We have thousands of fights and over a hundred star ships waiting.  They'll combine their attacks, only from all sides opposite to us.  They'll probably push him down, back into the atmosphere.  With that much fire power concentrating on him… Well it would be enough to make suns go super nova so I don't see why it wouldn't kill or very badly hurt Brolly."  Vil'Tani looked around at everyone for a second, "So does that sound like a good plan?"  She asked and Vegeta began shaking his head, "Why not?"

"Oh the plan itself is good, but what do we do about Brolly in the mean time?  While he's running rampant through my lands?  He can sense life forces you know, what if he decides to pay a visit to the massive amounts of them that are in orbit before we are ready?"  Vegeta asked as he sat back in his chair.

Vil'Tani frowned for a moment, "Keep him busy until we are ready."  Horial spoke out and the other three raised an eyebrow at her, "Keep him constantly busy.  Vegeta you said you wanted a crack at him right?  Well keep him busy until we are ready.  We'll send some troops, not many but enough, to help keep Brolly busy.  For one thing it'll help us in getting used to working together, for another, you get your rematch you were grumbling about when we first met, and thirdly we delay Brolly and distract him from anything but what's in front of him."

Vegeta face creased into a big grin, "I like your style.  Ok we'll do that.  I still have to pay Brolly back for killing… my son." Vegeta growled out.  Vil'Tani and Aoria shared the same look before Vil'Tani addressed Vegeta.

"Ummm… Vegeta?  Trunks isn't dead, neither is his friend."  Vil'Tani said but was stopped as Vegeta jumped up and leaned over the desk.

"WHAT!  Where is he?  He's not on the planet anymore!  I can't....  That sly kid."  Vegeta smirked as understanding spread across his face.

Vil'Tani nodded, "He and his friend were in orbit when I got here.  They were in… well it almost looked like a bubble."  Vil'Tani shrugged apologetically, "I picked them up but I haven't brought them down yet.  I figured that it was probably better to figure out what the situation was down here first."  Vil'Tani finished.

Vegeta let a small smile of happiness cross his face for a moment before it disappeared, "It doesn't really matter, and you couldn't keep those two anyways.  I've never seen two kids more adept at getting into trouble, or out of trouble, as those two.  I've tried to keep them contained, but I have yet to be successful.  I wouldn't be surprised if I saw them rush through that door right now…" The door burst open as Trunks and Goten ran in, Trunks in the lead with Goten right on his heels.

"FATHER!" Trunks cried and jumped over the desk and at his father.

Vegeta caught his son and hugged him, for perhaps the third time in his life.  Vegeta let go and set Trunks down before he stood over him, "I thought I told you NOT to get involved in this conflict Trunks!"  Vegeta yelled and looked over at Goten, "And the same went for you as well!  We're going to have a long discussion on how to obey commands when this is all over, namely in the gravity chamber." Goten and Trunks gulped before Goten thought of something.

Goten rubbed his head and grinned sheepishly, "Well…  You never said we couldn't get involved exactly.  You said we couldn't get directly involved… so we didn't.  We borrowed one of Trunks' mother's ion cannons.  We probably could have decreased the potency loss over that distance if we had angled the cannon properly and let gravity add its force and moment to it.  We could have done more damage if we had increased the energy input, although that would have rendered various facilities of the fort disabled, not like we needed anything except the emergency escape button."  Goten said, totally oblivious to the stares he was getting from Trunks and Vegeta.

Vegeta looked over at Trunks, "What happened to Goten?  Did you whap him on the head so hard he started speaking intelligently?"  Vegeta asked.

Trunks shook his head, "I don't know…  Goten how do you know all of this, and why didn't you tell me while we were preparing the cannon?"  Trunks asked incredulously.

Goten shrugged and grinned, "My big brother is Gohan!  He's not like your father Trunks, he taught me more then he trained me.  I just like acting stupid, its rather funny."  Goten said with a smile as he sat on the map, "Besides the ion cannon wouldn't work even if we had doubled the size of the cannon and poured the entire energy supply of the planet into it.  Not while Brolly has that pendant around his neck at least.  You get rid of that and he begins to rely on his own ki instead of his own and something else."

"What pendant?  How do you know he has a pendant?  And how do you know he's drawing energy from it?"  Trunks asked.

Goten looked at him curiously, "You mean you didn't…  Well look at him.  I saw it on the main screen of the fort when he rushed at us.  I noticed it because it was cyan and that's my favorite color!"  Goten said happily, "But I also sensed two ki's, albeit one really really small, but the small one was… different.  It took me a while to realize what it was.  The pendant took someone's life force and filtered it through the pendant at a slow but steady trickle into that weird saiyan.  Once it was in him the big guy's body absorbed it like it was his own."  Goten finished.

Everyone in the room was looking at him weirdly, "What?  My big brother always used to say that it's the little things that matter, because every big thing is made up of lots of little things."  Goten tried to explain.

Vil'Tani just shook her head and smiled at Goten, "Well, that certainly is useful information."  Vil'Tani turned her head to look at Vegeta, "It doesn't really need to be said, but that pendant should be taken from Brolly before we initiate the final assault on him." Vil'Tani finished.

Vegeta nodded and patted Trunks and Goten on the head, "Alright you two.  I want you to go to Gohan, tell him to meet me here as soon as he is better.  We have a plan that will take Brolly out for sure now."  Vegeta said and gave the two young saiyans a push.

Goten gave a wide smile and ran out of the room behind Trunks, Vil'Tani watched Goten leave, a little smile on her face.  Vegeta walked around the desk and regard the three generals, "Well people, lets get this plan into motion."  Vegeta said and walked out of the study with the three generals behind him.

Too be continued…

Goten isn't stupid like he is in the series, why?  Well I explained it.  With Gohan and Chichi there… well how COULD he be stupid?  Naive?  Innocent?  Hell yes, stupid?  No.

Brolly can speak, but he doesn't do it often.  He does it when he has the upper hand and wants to piss people off.  Normally though he doesn't speak, he lets his fists do the talking.

Well, I actually loved writing this chapter, maybe that's why it's so long, I just couldn't stop.  I had more planned for it but I think that it would fit better in the next chapter.  I did say in the last one that you would hate me in this one… well perhaps not; I decided to delay the hateful stuff a chapter.


	7. Chapter 6: In Times of Agony

There were a few things I forgot to mention on my last chapter.  Vil'Tani is about 60 years old, which seems old but in reality…  her species has incredible longevity, like elves from myths and Ogiers (from the Wheel of Time series).  And like both those races, her race matures slower.  Her being 60 years old is equivalent to a 14-year-old saiyan.  She's spent 40 of her 60 years study the arts of war, which is why she is so good.  She's been interested in testing her wits against others almost since she was born and finds the most satisfaction in out-smarting her opponents.

Another thing is you may wonder why everyone speaks the same language.  Well I may have said this once but oh well; there is a quadrant language that all races learn in school.  Also on top of that they have translators whenever they leave their home world incase they meet a race or person that can't speak the quadrant language.

Another thing people may be wonder is that Vil'Tani's race is called Cerians, Aoria's race is called Ourians and Horial's race is well…  hehe you'll have to wait and see.  The cerians are like saiyans, they can use energy waves, but they get their power from an external source, not an internal one.  The external source is a gem on their planet that can harness the energy in the fabric of reality, in the bonds that hold reality together.  How much they can hold depends on how much their body can contain without exploding.  Training in their case would be to hold as much as they could for as long as they could and slowly increase the amount they hold each time they try.  Ourians use ki like saiyans, but have adapted it to different uses other then attacks.  They use theirs to protect.  Horial's race… well they have no ki which to speak of, they are pure technological.

                                                                         Chapter 6: In Times of Agony

Goten and Trunks landed in the glade near Gohan and Videl's house and rushed down the path to the house.  When they got there they found the door open.  The two boys walked in and noticed Videl sitting in a couch drinking some liquid substance while speaking to another female saiyan.  Videl looked up at them as they entered the room and smiled.

"I'm glad to see you boys are alright.  Shouldn't you be at your fort?"  Videl asked.

Trunks and Goten exchanged a look, "Well… about that fort… It kind of no longer exists."  Trunks said slowly, "We pissed Brolly off and barely got out with our lives."

Videl only shook her head, "You two, I thought you were told to stay out of the fight?" Videl said.

Goten gave a sheepish grin, "Well ya, at least directly.  We thought helping indirectly wouldn't be harmful…  So we hit Brolly with an ion cannon."  Goten admitted.

Videl spit some of her drink out and stared at Goten and Trunks incredulously, "How on Vegeta did you think hitting Brolly with an ion cannon wouldn't be harmful?"  Videl asked in disbelief.

Goten shrugged apologetically before he sat down in one of the chairs, "Videl who's the girl?"  Goten asked.

"Oh, her name is Karie.  She's one of the people under Gohan's command… and currently the only one still alive with the exception of a few that stayed out of the fighting."  Videl said.

Karie looked over at Goten and smirked, "You know, you're kinda cute, but way to young for my tastes.  I'll bet you'll have girls all over you in no time."  Karie said and laughed a little as Goten made a face.

"Argh, Girls!  I don't want girls all over me!"  Goten complained.

"Don't worry, that'll all change in due time."  Karie said with another laugh, "How's it going my prince?"

Trunks walked over to the last chair and sat down in it, "I'm fine…  Oh hey Videl do you know when Gohan will be out?"  Trunks asked.

"Yes I do, he shouldn't be much more then a couple of hours.  He's been through worse scrapes then this… I just can't remember any."  Videl replied.

"Oh ok, because my father needs him and Kakkarot to help him with his plan to beat Brolly.  I don't know what the plan is, he never told me.  He just told me to get Gohan when he is ready.  I really don't wanna get him upset.  He's still a little ticked off about my last stunt.  I don't want to push it any time soon."  Trunks finished.

-------------------------------

An hour later…

Vil'Tani flew beside Vegeta as they approached their destination.  Their destination was a city that Brolly was about to attack.  They were currently a few minutes behind the behemoth.  Vil'Tani looked gazed at the scenery, looked at Vegeta and then back at the scenery, seemingly deep in thought.

"What is it!?  You're making me nervous doing that!"  Vegeta snapped out.

Vil'Tani gave a little start before she finally settled her eyes on Vegeta, "Who's Goten?  I don't know anything about him except his name…  He's… Interesting."  Vil'Tani said at last.

Vegeta smirked, "So that's what's on your mind.  That's Kakkarot's youngest brat, brother to Gohan and my advisor.  He's my sons best friend and the two of them together make hell seem like a pleasant place."  Vegeta said.

Vil'Tani frowned, "Are they that cruel?" She asked.

Vegeta began to laugh, "No, they just find the worst ways of humiliating you.  They are trouble incarnate.  I have never seen anyone or anything cause more trouble then those two."  Vegeta declared.

A small smile crept across the female's face, "I see.  So they've caused you some… problems?"  Vil'Tani said as she tried to stifle a giggle.

Vegeta glared at her and she quickly subdued the giggle.  The two flew in silence the rest of the way.  When they got there the city was already destroyed but Brolly was still there, waiting for Vegeta to arrive.

Brolly grinned at Vegeta, "Ready for another round of main the king?"  Brolly asked jovially and laughed as he saw Vegeta scowl and a vein pop out.

Vil'Tani pulled on her ear lobe and a piece of metal jutted out from her ear and completely covered it.  From the ear piece a microphone scooted out and appeared in front of her mouth.  As this was happening she was backing away from Brolly, not wanting to be near the center of the conflict.  All good generals know that the front lines are no place for them.  An eyepiece popped out from the earpiece and crossed both her eyes.  She pushed a button on the earpiece and whispered something into the microphone so as to not draw attention to herself.

A few seconds later a small army of several thousand troops appeared out of thin air.  The army was a mixture of Ourians, Cerians and Horial's troops.  Brolly looked down at the troops and smirked.  "I see you've brought friends to the slaughter fest Vegeta.  How kind of you."  Brolly said as he grinned evilly at him.

Vegeta snarled and powered up to full.  Just as he finished powering up Brolly attacked, throwing a punch into Vegeta's face.  Vegeta leaned back out of the way and snapped his foot up into Brolly's chin.  Brolly rocked back for a second before he brought his foot up between Vegeta's legs.  Vegeta doubled over and grabbed his groin, totally open and unprepared for Brolly when he delivered a double overhand blow to his back.  Vegeta flew towards the ground and slammed into it, forming a large crater.

Brolly was about to follow when a barrage of artillery and energy waves slammed into him from the army on the ground.  Brolly growled in annoyance and fired enough energy blasts for each soldier before he turned his attention to Vegeta.  The blasts slammed into the army and caused a massive explosion.  Brolly flew down after Vegeta only to see that the delay from the army had given him time to recover.  Vegeta flew towards Brolly, murder clearly stamped in his eyes.

Vegeta flipped around at the last second and smashed both his feet into Brolly's out-stretched hands.  The shockwave knocked both saiyans back away from each other.  Before Brolly or Vegeta attack again another barrage of artillery and energy waves slammed into the larger of the two saiyans.  Brolly snarled in annoyance and turned to face the offending army only to feel Vegeta's feet plant themselves into the side of his face.  Brolly flew backwards for a distance before he righted himself and glared at Vegeta and the army.  The army hadn't phased by his attacks due to the efforts of the Ourians.

Brolly roared in anger and rushed towards the army only to have Vegeta intercept him, with a fist.  Brolly growled and turned his attention back to Vegeta and began to pummel him.  Brolly hadn't been attacking Vegeta for long until a third wave of attacks from the army below slammed into him.  Brolly growled in annoyance as he tried to ignore the attacks.  Just as Brolly was getting adjusted to the assault from the army and turned his full attention onto Vegeta, several high power beams slammed into him and actually caused him some small measure of pain.  Brolly yelled in pain and anger as he surveyed the army once more.  Several of the power armor warriors had dropped their weapons and were using particle-beam cannons.  Brolly ignored Vegeta and flew at the army only to have Vegeta zip down below him and slam both of his fists into Brolly's stomach, sending the huge saiyan upwards.  Brolly didn't go far before a pair of feet slammed into his back and sent him careening towards Vegeta who took the opportunity to slam his foot into Brolly's face, only it didn't work to well.

Brolly grabbed the foot and threw Vegeta away.  Brolly tried to follow the attack but two fists slammed into Brolly's back and sent him careening once more towards the ground.  Vegeta flipped up and regarded the falling Brolly for a second before he looked up and saw Kakkarot floating him above staring down at Brolly.  Brolly floated back up in the air and regarded Kakkarot with hatred in his eyes.  Brolly arched back and roared once more.  The pendant around his neck glowed brilliantly as his energy sky rocketed.

Without warning, Brolly shot upwards and slammed a fist into Kakkarot's stomach.  Kakkarot coughed up spit and a bit of blood as he doubled over.  Vegeta was quick to engage Brolly and began to slam his fists into the massive super saiyan.  Kakkarot, now recovered from the blow attempted to kick Brolly in the side only to have him block it with an arm and counter with a kick.  Brolly's foot smashed into Kakkarot's hip and threw him slightly off balanced.  Before Brolly could take advantage of it the attacks from below started up again causing him to falter slightly.  The slight falter gave Vegeta the time he needed to slam a ki infused fist into Brolly's face with his left hand and throw a highly condensed, but powerful, ki blast into Brolly's face with his right.  Brolly rocked backwards towards the oncoming attacks from below.  Not a second had passed until Kakkarot planet both his feet into Brolly's chest and started to fire his own energy blasts at the bigger saiyan at an incredible pace.

Brolly recovered after a few seconds and erected a shield to protect against the blasts.  Brolly floated up until he could look at Kakkarot eye to eye.  Brolly lifted his head to the sky and zoned out for a second.  When he came to he looked at Kakkarot with a very evil smirk on his face, "I hope you've already said good bye to your loved ones… Kakkarot."  Brolly said before he blasted away faster then anyone thought possible, in the direction of Kakkarot's house.

Kakkarot's eyes widened in surprise, "NO!"  Kakkarot roared and blasted after Brolly.  Vegeta didn't hesitate to follow, he knew what it felt to lose a mate, or almost lose one.

Vil'Tani floated to the ground where the armies were located, "Good job guys, you did well.  It seems that we can do something after all.  I'm going to go after Vegeta.  Return to the ships and await further commands from either me, Vegeta, Aoria or Horial."  Vil'Tani said to the troops.

Most of them nodded and soon all of them were teleported back to the ships.  Vil'Tani blasted off into the sky as she chased after Vegeta and Kakkarot, using the visor to tell her where they were.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

15 minutes later…

Brolly appeared on the lawn of a small house located deep with a forest south of the capital city.  With a grin on his face he walked towards the door of the house and didn't bother opening it.  The massive saiyan just walked through the door causing it splinter and fly in all directions.  Chichi walked out of the kitchen, ready to give whoever caused such a ruckus a piece of her mind, and seeing Brolly in the doorway didn't deter her in the least.  A vein popped out on Chichi's forehead as she regarded the shattered remains of the door scattered throughout her living room.

"YOU BARBARIC ANIMAL!  DO YOU EVEN KNOW HOW TO USE A DOORKNOB!?" Chichi screeched, causing Brolly to flinch under the high pitch scream.  Twin ki pans appeared in Chichi's hands as she stomped over towards the planets terrorist.  "HOW DARE YOU JUST BARGE IN HERE WITHOUT INVITATION!" Chichi screeched again and slammed one of her pans over Brolly's head causing him to get floored.  The second pan smashed into his face and flung him out of the house and into the yard beyond.

------------

Trunks, Goten, Videl and Karie sharply raised their heads as they sensed Chichi's ki spike sharply.  They all concentrated on the cause and recognized the almost overwhelming energy of Brolly right beside her.

Goten jumped up, "MOM'S IN TROUBLE!"  Goten yelled as he spun around and sprinted out of the house.  Trunks, Karie and Videl quickly followed and soon all four were flying towards Kakkarot's house.

------------

"ALL YOU HAD TO DO WAS KNOCK ON THE DOOR AND I WOULD HAVE OPENED IT FOR YOU!  THERE WAS NO REASON TO DESTROY MY PROPERTY!"  Chichi screeched, keeping Brolly on his knees due to the high-pitched voice.  Again and again the ki pans slammed onto Brolly's head, each blow causing the mighty super saiyan to bend further and further towards the ground.

Goten's mouth dropped as he saw his mother bring the greatest villain of all time to the ground.  Goten flew over and landed beside Chichi.  Videl, Trunks and Karie were quick to follow.

"Mom, wow, I didn't know you had it in you!  You just brought Brolly to the ground…" Goten said in amazement.

Chichi looked over at Goten with a smile, "Your old mother isn't dead and decrepit yet." Chichi said with a smile.

"… Yes you are."  Brolly growled as he jumped to his feet and grabbed Chichi by the throat,  "You die here, and now…" Brolly looked over at Goten and grinned, "Thanks boy.  For distracting her for me."  With that Brolly slammed his other hand through Chichi's chest and began to yank out her internal organs.  Chichi screamed in agony as she felt her insides get torn violently out of her and in a sudden gush of blood from her chest and mouth Chichi's head fell back, her eyes glazed over in death.

Goten stared at his dead mother in shock, "Mom… No… what… what have I done… WHAT HAVE I DONE!  NO!  YOU… **YOU FUCKING BASTARD!!**" Goten screamed out at Brolly as the ground around him began to shake.  Shockwaves rippled from his body as flashes of light lashed out.  "**YOU WILL PAY YOU BASTARD!**"  Goten screamed one last time as his hair turned yellow and his eyes teal.

The other three saiyans that arrived with Goten stared on in shock at the brutal murder.  A sonic boom sounded as Goten rushed at Brolly.  The massive saiyan just laughed as Goten delivered a powerful upper cut.  Brolly grabbed Goten's arms and slammed him into the grab before he picked him up and rammed his elbow into Goten's stomach.

Goten doubled over in pain and blood dripped from his mouth as he hit the ground and began to cough.  Brolly was about to kick Goten when a foot slammed into his head.  Brolly looked over at Trunks and slapped him away.  Trunks flew back and slammed into the house, collapsing one of the walls.  Brolly redirected his attention to Goten.  With a massive hand Brolly picked Goten up by his hair and began to repeatedly slam his other fist into Goten's stomach.  Goten yelled in pain each time the fist slammed home, and each time more blood was coughed up.

Trunks sat up and was about to rush to Goten's aid when Brolly let him go.  Goten hadn't begun to fall before the massive saiyan delivered one more massive punch to Goten's stomach.  An auditable snap echoes through the clearing as Goten goes limp and falls to the ground.  The youngest super saiyan falls back out and into his regular form as his life force fades to almost nothing.  Trunks watched as his best and only real friend fell to the ground and for all intents and purposes, dead.  As Goten fell, Trunks felt as if he lost part of himself, the innocence that was left in him.  A single tear fell from his eye as his face contorted into rage.

Trunks pronounced a single, long word as his rage overwhelmed every fiber of his being, "**BBRROOLLLLLYY!**" Trunks roared as the ground around him erupted into a massive pillar of golden light.  The ground started to shake and a crater formed itself where Trunks had stood and expanded outwards until it encompassed the house and the yard.  When the light died down Trunks stared at Brolly with the yellow hair and teal eyes that marked a super saiyan.

Another yell erupted from across the clearing as Karie ascended to super saiyan as well.  Twin sonic booms sounded in the crater as both Karie and Trunks flew at Brolly at the same time.  Brolly lazily blocked and dodged the flurry of punches and kicks that were sent in his direction by the calm and calculated super saiyan and the totally enraged one.  Try as they might, Karie and Trunks couldn't lay a damaging finger on Brolly.  Brolly soon grew tired of the game and kicked Karie away as he focused on Trunks.

He grabbed Trunks face in both his hands and slammed it off his knee, crushing his nose and breaking his jaw.  Brolly slammed a fist in Trunks' already ruined face and twirled him around before he slammed the saiyan prince into the ground.  Brolly walked over to Trunks and tore his eyes out before he stepped on his stomach and began to press down on him.  Trunks screamed in pain as he felt his ribs breaking under the extreme pressure.  The ground around them began to sink down as Brolly put more and more pressure on Trunks.  Unexpectedly Brolly stopped and just picked Trunks up.

"You really are pitiful, you all are.  None of you are a match for me, and none of you will ever be."  Brolly smirked before continuing, "I had only thought to hurt Kakkarot, but now I can hurt Vegeta as well, what a lucky day it is for me." With that Brolly grabbed Trunk's left arm and wrung it dry, literally.  Trunks screamed in agony as his arm was twisted into a mangled mass of flesh and bone.  Blood spilled from every pore on his arm and rained onto the ground.  Brolly backhanded Trunks once more to the ground before he left him alone.  Trunks curled up around his arm and held onto it as the life-threatening wound continued to leak blood out of his body.

Brolly walked over to Videl, a smile on her face, "I'm going to enjoy you."  Brolly said with a leer as he continued his slow but steady approach to the woman.  Videl backed up a few steps before she got into a fighting stance and snarled at Brolly.

Out of nowhere Karie appeared and delivered a flying double kick to the side of Brolly's head.  Karie's feet broke on impact as Brolly looked at her.  Brolly just grabbed her pelvic area and twirled her around.  Blood leaked from Karie's pussy as Brolly's fingers cut deeply into her flesh.  After the third time around Brolly slammed Karie into the ground and yanked his hand out, taking a part of Karie's pelvic area with him.  Karie screamed as she felt her pussy get tore apart and clutched her ruined reproductive organ.

Brolly brought the piece of quivering flesh up to his mouth and licked it once before he tossed it aside like trash.  Brolly sent a large blast into Karie as he walked past her.  The blast tore into Karie, disintegrating her top and turning her back into a mass of sores and blisters.  Karie fell out of super saiyan, the pain being too much to stay in it.  The massive saiyan resumed his walk over to Videl and when he finally reached her he leered down at her once again.

"Why don't you just stop struggling, its futile, you may even enjoy it… until I tear you apart that is."  Brolly suggested to Videl.

"NEVER! You muscle bound freak.  You're not going to take advantage of me!"  Videl yelled as she attacked Brolly.

Videl kicked him the face and leap backwards before he could grab her and fire several blasts into his face.  Brolly just walked through them and approached Videl once more, only to be met by more ki blasts.  Brolly ignored them for they were nothing to him.  Videl charged Brolly again and threw a kick at his head.  Brolly let it hit him and took the opportunity to grab Videl by the neck.

Brolly lifted her up to his eye level and licked his lips, "For some reason I get the feeling I'm going to enjoy this a lot more then you."  Brolly said but frowned after a moment as he looked at her stomach, "You're pregnant…  Now, isn't that interesting?"  Brolly said with a smirk as he looked up at Videl's face.

Fear was the dominant emotion in Videl now.  Not fear for herself, but for her unborn child, _GOHAN! HELP ME! BROLLY!  HE HAS ME!  PLEASE WAKE UP!_

----------------------------------

At Gohan's house…

A voice echoed through Gohan's semi-conscious mind, _GOHAN! HELP ME! BROLLY!  HE HAS ME!  PLEASE WAKE UP!_ Which was followed by a feeling of intense pain, _GOHAN! OUR CHILD! HELP!_ Gohan's eyes flashed open.  In a split second the regeneration chamber exploded into a shower of metal and glass as Gohan grabbed the spare battle armor and put it on in record time.  Gohan was out the door and at Videl before a second had gone by after Videl's last mental message.

Gohan landed in the clearing and stopped at the gruesome sight in front of him.  Brolly held Videl by the throat with his left hand, but in his other hand was the fetus of their unborn child.  A huge hole in Videl's stomach told the entire story.  Brolly looked over at Gohan and smirked.  Brolly's right hand closed slowly over the fetus and its life force winked out as blood seeped out between Brolly's fingers.  Brolly let Videl drop to the ground where she crumpled into a pile, too shocked to function properly.

Gohan looked around; trying to block out, deny what just happened, but his eyes kept falling on death and destruction.  Left he looked and there laid Karie, bleeding and dieing.  Right he looked and there was Trunks, curled into a fetal position with his ruined face and arm held by his one good arm.  He looked forward and saw Goten, bloody, unconscious and his mother, dead with her insides outside her body.  Gohan looked back at and past Brolly to Videl, also massively bleeding, internally and externally.  Finally he focused on Brolly, and the blood seeping through the clenched fist.

Gohan began to shake uncontrollably as the facts hit him all at once.  Nearly everyone he ever cared about laid dead or dieing around him, and he hadn't been there to help them.  Agony raged, barely in check, throughout his body, and more then that, his power.  An almost audible snap could be heard as Gohan's mind broke under the strain of the past few seconds and the last of his mental restraints were thrown to the four winds.

Gohan arched back and his feet left the ground as he cried out his agony to the heavens.  The overwhelming agony turned into overwhelming rage as he roared louder and louder.  With a sudden lurch the entire planet shifted a few miles out of its orbit around the sun and began to shake.  Shockwaves exploded out from Gohan and raced across the surface of the planet, each one stronger then the previous, each one going further and faster until they circled the entire planet.  A massive aura erupted around the scream completely obscuring Gohan from view.  With what felt like the planet shifting in its orbit yet again, the ground around Gohan exploded into a massive vortex of yellow and gold light as lightning crackled up and down the twisting pillar.  Pieces of the ground didn't raise, entire ground rose, section by section only to be torn apart by the god like hurricane.  Brolly was forced to hold his arms in front of him as the energy that radiated from Gohan pushed him further and further back.  Then with a sudden bright light that would be seen from neighboring solar systems and galaxies, a massive explosion erupted from the epicenter of the maelstrom.  The explosion rocked over Brolly, singeing his hair and slightly burning his skin before a massive vacuum took its place.  Brolly was surprised by the sudden change of pull and was dragged in the opposite direction for a few seconds before he halted himself.

 Brolly gazed down at Gohan and for the first time ever, felt fear.  The General had gone through a major transformation.  His muscle mass had decreased but his hair was longer.  Lightning crackled up and down Gohan's body and lashed out at anything nearby.  But it wasn't that which made Brolly afraid.  It was the sheer rage; the sheer power the emanated from Gohan.  His power had over doubled what it had been at his peak.  He looked ready to kill anything that moved, and had the power to do it.  Gohan let out a soundless roar, which caused the ground around him to rend asunder yet again, as he tore from the ground and slammed his head into Brolly's face.

Brolly rocked backwards only to rock forward as Gohan planted his fists repeatedly into the behemoths stomach.  With a snarl Gohan grabbed Brolly's arms and slammed him into the ground.  Not satisfied with just that Gohan repeatedly slammed him into the ground, causing the crater he was in to get bigger and bigger.  Finally Gohan tired of the little game drilled both of his feet in Brolly's stomach, causing the larger saiyan to double over and cough up blood.

Gohan grabbed Brolly by the throat and floated up into the air, Gohan's face twisted into an expression of insane rage, "How do you like being on the receiving end of the pain Brolly!"  Gohan snarled out in a voice so chilling that it made the deepest winter seem like the center of a raging volcano.

"You are going to pay a hundred times over for the pain that you've caused me!"  Gohan snarled out again but couldn't get any further as Kakkarot and Vegeta appeared.

Vegeta and Kakkarot looked at Gohan in surprise as they noticed the massive change that had come over him.  Then Kakkarot looked down and gasped.  Vegeta quickly followed his gaze and a look of shock and horror spread across his face as he noticed the carnage below.

Vegeta landed and rushed over to Trunks and picked him up into his arms.  Trunks turned around and sobbed into Vegeta, being able to tell that it was he because of the smell and contour of his body, "Trunks…  That bastard…  Don't worry Trunks I'll get him!"  Vegeta whispered to his son before he gently set him back down.

Kakkarot landed beside his mate at the same time as Vegeta landed beside Trunks.  Kakkarot took one look at Chichi and collapsed to his knees and began to sob, "No!  This can't be happening, not you too Chichi… So many have died today… Because of that… That… THING!"  Kakkarot spat out and got to his feet but before he could move he spotted Goten, "Oh no!  Not you too!"  Kakkarot whispered to himself as he walked over to Goten and kneeled beside him and put his hand on his sons back.  He felt his spine and noticed a part of it shattered and the nerves in it severed.

Kakkarot's face became set as he floated into the air to hover beside Gohan.  Vegeta soon followed and the two were about to attack Brolly who was still being strangled by Gohan, "Leave!  Now!"  Gohan snarled out at his father and king.

The two of them looked at Gohan, "NEVER!  THIS BASTARD TORE MY SON APART!"  Vegeta yelled at Gohan.

Gohan turned his head to regard Vegeta, "Leave… Now… Or I will kill you." Gohan said in a deathly cold voice.

The venom laced throughout Gohan's voice took Vegeta aback but it didn't deter him.  "NO!  You can't order me around Gohan!  I am you king!" Vegeta growled out at Gohan.

"He killed my mate, and he massacred my son.  I am NOT going to let him get away with this!"  Kakkarot declared his agreement with Vegeta.

Gohan turned back to regard Brolly and for all intents and purposes looked like he was ignoring Vegeta and Kakkarot before two huge energy blasts flash from either side of him and slammed into the two surprised super saiyans.  The blasts knocked Vegeta and Kakkarot a couple hundred meters away from Gohan before they exploded, sending the saiyans to the ground.  Vegeta and Kakkarot blasted out of the craters they made and stopped a few meters away from Gohan.

"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!  WE ARE ON YOUR SIDE!"  Vegeta roared.

"I am not on yours.  I am on my own!"  Gohan snarled out, "Now leave, I will not give you another warning!"  Gohan declared coldly before he brought his full attention back to Brolly, "This beast will get what he deserves.  Do not worry about that."

With that Gohan stopped listening to his father's and Vegeta's protests and began to hammer his fists into Brolly, having let go of his neck.  With a kick strong enough to split planets, Gohan hit Brolly in the chest and sent him flying out and away from the crater that used to be his mothers house.  Gohan quickly followed and a shockwave sounded as Gohan collided once again with Brolly, sending the bigger saiyan flying further away.

Kakkarot looked over at Vegeta before something clicked in, "I think a monster worse then Brolly has just been set loose on the planet.  I… I'm not sure who I want to win more now."  Kakkarot confided.

"What are you talking about Kakkarot?  Gohan is the obvious choice, he's your son.  He still has ties to us."  Vegeta argued

Kakkarot shook his head and spoke with wisdom beyond his years, and maturity, "Didn't you see his eyes?  He can no longer grasp those concepts, the concepts of loyalty, love, honor, and commitment.  He has become a machine bent on revenge.  And you know what revenge did to Brolly."  Kakkarot finished.

Vegeta looked on in the direction that Gohan had knocked Brolly, just in time to see a massive glow on the horizon and feel a shockwave ripple past him.  Vegeta looked back at Kakkarot, "Why do I get the feeling that planet Vegeta won't be here by sun fall?" Vegeta asked to no one in particular.

To be continued…

If you are wondering how those bodies were still there after Gohan's accession?  Well, even in Gohan's rage he would never come close to harming them, so even though he lost all track of conscious thoughts, he still protected them, or what's left of them.  His subconscious erected barriers around them that withstood the power up.

Well, Gohan did it, he hit the next level, and boy is he pissed.  You know what… sometimes I don't even know what comes over myself.  What I did to Videl makes me wanna puke but…  I wrote it anyways.  Oh well, let the bodies hit the floor.

I liked writing this chapter, and my favorite part was when I was tearing Goten, Trunks, Karie, Chichi and Videl apart.  I'm one sick person… I think I need help :|

 Anyways, I'm not sure when next chapter is out.  I got no plans or guidelines for this.  I just write and write and when I hit a good spot to stop, I stop.  Sometimes I can't think of anything for months, or don't feel like doing it for that length of time.  But I'll get the next chapter out… when I get it out.


	8. Chapter 7: From Bad to Worse

Sorry for the titles not being centered, for some reason Fan Fiction doesn't want to have center, bold or underline work for the title.

                                                                                        **Chapter 7: From Bad to Worse**

Vil'Tani arrived in the crater just as Vegeta and Kakkarot finished their conversation.  She looked down at the bodies on the ground and shook her head.  She had seen people get mangled before, but there was just something about the scene that nothing could compare to.  Kakkarot and Vegeta landed on the ground, completely oblivious to Vil'Tani hovering above.  The two super saiyans had a haunted look in their eyes as they walked to their loved ones.  Vil'Tani flew down and landed beside Kakkarot.

"… What happened here?"  Karie asked as she looked around, "Aside from the obvious."

Kakkarot raised his eyes from where his mate laid to look at the young general, "Brolly happened.  He attacked my home… killed my mate and my son.  He's also responsible for the rest of the destruction here."  Kakkarot said with sadness in his voice and eyes.

Vil'Tani turned and walked over to Goten with wide eyes, not really believing what the saiyan had said, _how can he die… before I even got a chance to know him?_

"Come on Kakkarot, you can weep later, we have to help the others, and fast or they won't make it."  Vegeta yelled from where he stood with Trunks cradled in his arms.

Karie slowly got up off the ground, finally able to overcome the pain enough to stand, "D-Don't worry about… me.  I… I can… go on my own."  Karie said in gasps.  Blood still ran down her leg from her wounds but she ignored it as she hobbled over, "Does anyone… have some spare… clothes?"  Karie asked.

Vegeta nodded over in the direction of the ruined house, "Try in there, you might find some that haven't been totally destroyed.  Anything would be better then what you are currently wearing."  Vegeta said.  Karie nodded, too tired and in too much pain to be embarrassed as she headed into the ruined house. Vegeta turned to Kakkarot, "I'm going Kakkarot, grab your sons mate and bring her when you can.  I'm not staying here any longer."  And with that Vegeta blasted into the air as he headed to the palace.

Kakkarot walked slowly over to Videl and gently lifted her off the ground.  Videl didn't even stir, still in shock at having her child torn out of her.  Kakkarot shook his head slowly, "How could Brolly do this… to anyone?  This is beyond sickening…  Nothing can describe this."  Kakkarot said to himself and was about to go off when a call stopped him.

"Kakkarot!  Goten's still alive!"  Vil'Tani called out.

Kakkarot whirled in her direction, hope once again reappearing in his eyes, "Are you sure?"  Kakkarot asked as he ran over to Goten, still carrying Videl.

Vil'Tani nodded, "He's breathing, but it's very shallow.  He too like the others will die without treatment."  Vil'Tani said as she picked Goten up in her arms.

Kakkarot searched for his son's life force, and found it.  It was dangerously low and was completely masked by the two massive powers raging further away unless it was looked for directly.  Kakkarot sighed in relief as a little weight was lifted off his shoulders, "Come then, let's get him some help."  Kakkarot said.

Karie walked out of the house then, a pair of Chichi's casual pants on and one of her baggy shirts. A little blood soaked the front of the pants but it not much showing that the majority of it was being held back due to some makeshift bandage or another, "Alright…  I feel a little better now…  Let's go."  Karie said.

Kakkarot nodded and the three of them took to the skies.  Kakkarot took the lead with Vil'Tani behind him and Karie beside Vil'Tani.

-------------------------------

Elsewhere…

The ground shook as Brolly slammed into it.  Gohan stared down at Brolly with a glare.  A second later a shockwave exploded out from Brolly as Gohan slammed a fist into his chest.  Brolly roared in pain and attempted to kick Gohan away only to have the foot grabbed.  Brolly was lifted from the ground and thrown away as Gohan let go of his foot.  Brolly slammed into the ground once more and skidded a few hundred meters.

Brolly picked himself off the ground and floated up into the air.  Gohan followed suit, stopping within a few feet of Brolly.  Brolly snarled and all out attacked Gohan.  Punches with the force to crack moons flew at Gohan who just kept blocking them all with little or no effort.  Brolly all of a sudden released a massive blast of energy point blank into Gohan's face.

Gohan was thrown backwards from the blast and was hit by a second attack from Brolly.  Gohan slammed into the ground but no sooner then he hit it was he back in the air.  Brolly's eyes widen in surprise as Gohan appeared in his face.  A second later Brolly slammed into the ground again.

Gohan raised his hands above his head, "**MASENKO-HA!**"  Gohan roared as he unleashed a massive energy wave at Brolly.  Brolly stood up and tried to move out of the way but was hit anyways.  The blast drilled into the planet carrying the huge saiyan with it.  The energy wave ripped several hundred kilometers through the planet before it exploded, tearing apart a piece of the continental plate.  Brolly screamed in pain as lava washed over his body.  Brolly quickly erected a shield around him to protect him from the lava as he felt for Gohan's presence.

Brolly turned around in surprise when he sensed Gohan beside him.  An instant later Brolly's shield cracked and crumbled as Gohan tore through it.  Once again lava rolled over Brolly's body, causing severe pain.  A more intense pain soon replaced the earlier pain as Gohan slammed a fist into Brolly's stomach and launched the larger saiyan back up through the continental plate.

Gohan sped up through the ground, making yet another tunnel through the planet and appeared under Brolly as he fell.  Gohan slammed his knee into Brolly's back as he passed by, causing the other saiyan to bellow in pain yet again.  Gohan grabbed Brolly by the throat and proceeded to slam his feet into Brolly's chest faster then he could see them.  A crack was heard as one of Brolly's ribs broke and Gohan let him go by delivering a kick so hard that it tore Brolly from his own hands.

Brolly flew backwards through the air before he stopped himself.  Brolly glared at Gohan and screamed in rage.  The pendant on Brolly's chest glowed brilliantly once more as Brolly drew yet more power from it.  Gohan frowned at it for a moment before he charged to attack Brolly.  When Gohan appeared before Brolly he didn't attack, instead he tore the pendant from around Brolly's neck and threw it behind him.

Almost immediately Brolly's power halved and went back to what it was when he had first arrived on the planet.  Brolly shook his head as if awakening from a bad nightmare and looked up.  As he saw Gohan his eyes widen and he backed away from Gohan, fear in his eyes.  Gohan smiled grimly as he regarded the sudden change in Brolly, "No longer so confident anymore are we Brolly?"  Gohan mocked as he floated slowly towards Brolly, "You are going to pay for what you have done!"

Unbeknownst to both saiyans the pendant stopped its momentum and floated back to regard the combat.  It wasn't upset that it had been torn from Brolly. After all, it only wanted to be in the possession of the strongest.  Or should it say, have possession of the strongest.

Brolly backed even more, "I-I'm sorry…  I didn't mean too…" Brolly protested to Gohan but fell upon deaf ears.

"Stow it!  You are not getting out of this torture by begging.  I have a debt of pain that I owe you and that debt can never be repaid!"  Gohan snarled and blasted forward to slam his knee into Brolly's face.

Brolly's nose broke and blood splattered down his face as his head rocked backwards.  Gohan threw two more punches, both of them connected with Brolly's stomach, and sounds of breaking bone echo through the air.  Gohan grabbed Brolly's head and slammed it off his knee.  Brolly's forehead split open and before Brolly could do anything a kick to his chest sent him into the air.  Gohan zipped up above Brolly and planted both his hands into his back.  Brolly yelled out in pain as he fell from the air and slammed into the ground, sending cracks through the earth.  

Gohan hovered far above Brolly and smirked down in satisfaction.  Before Gohan could do anything he felt something go around his neck and a small 'snick' was heard as the pendant clasped itself around Gohan's neck.  Gohan gasped, arched back and screamed.  A giant being was super imposed upon Gohan for a second before it shrunk and disappeared, into Gohan.  Gohan screamed louder and louder as he felt a presence try and dominate his mind and body.  Gohan fought back against it with all his might.  The air around him rippled and shifted and it seemed as if the fabric of reality shifted as well.  Brolly looked up out of the crater at Gohan in horror.

A massive explosion lit the sky and a shockwave rippled out of Gohan as the struggle ended.  Gohan brought his head down and looked at Brolly, the smirk once again on his face.  Gohan appeared totally unchanged, aside from the fact that his eyes were glowing cyan.  The cyan color soon faded out to be replaced with his original teal pupils.  Gohan raised his hand over his head and his smirk spread even wider as a ball of energy appeared in it.  The energy blast expanded to monstrous proportions frighteningly quick.  Gohan looked up at his energy ball then back down at Brolly, and dropped the planet killer.

The blast slammed into Brolly's outstretched hands as he attempted to hold it back, to prevent it from detonating the planet.  Gohan grinned once at the energy blast as it slowly pushed Brolly into the ground and promptly put his back to him.  Gohan stretched out his senses and found Kakkarot heading towards the capital and Vegeta already there along with a few others he could not identify.

Gohan smirked maliciously, "Hehehe…  More super saiyans to… destroy."  Gohan said to himself as he rocketed towards the capital.

Brolly strained against the blast as he attempted to push it out to space.  It was becoming more difficult by the second as the ground he stood upon cracked and gave way every few seconds.  Suddenly the blast stopped and reversed direction and flew up into the air before it exploded near the atmosphere.  The shockwaves that blasted outwards from the explosion circled the planet several times.

Brolly looked up into the sky incredulously, _how…  I was straining against it one second, and the next it's… flung away like nothing_. A chuckle was heard to his right causing him to whip his head around.

Aoria stood there with his arms crossed across his chest.  Behind him were several hundred Ourians, most of them panting from a massive exertion, "I'm not entirely sure what is going on at the moment, but I can tell when someone is honestly trying to do something good.  You may have been the enemy before, but by attempting to stop that blast single handedly even though you knew you couldn't stop it… well that shows to me that perhaps you are not what you appear."  Aoria said as he walked forward, "What I want to know is why Gohan, the planet's savior, just tried to destroy it and you?"  Aoria asked.

Brolly regarded the other one warily, "It has to do with that pendant.  I found it on an abandon planet down in the south quadrant…  I don't know what happened but as soon as I touched it, it came to life.  It attached itself to me before I could do anything."  Brolly said, "Next thing I know, I'm watching the world from behind my eyes but I have no control over actions.  There is… something inside that pendant, or there is something that can reach through that pendant and control whoever it is touching."  Brolly finished.

Aoria thought to himself for a couple of minutes before he nodded, "Alright I believe you, but not because of your explanation.  I, or I should say, my race has to ability to… how should I put it, feel a person's soul inside their body.  I sensed two souls within you, but one of them was so small and insignificant I thought nothing of it.  That insignificant soul is no longer within you, and judging by your change in attitude, makes me think that perhaps it wasn't as insignificant as I first thought."  Aoria said, "It also makes also seems that it is now inside Gohan."

Brolly shuddered, "Gohan is unstoppable now.  That thing was able to double my normal energy, and if it can double mine, it can double Gohan's." Brolly said sadly, "I think I should go help King Vegeta, he is going to have his hands more then full with Gohan."  Brolly said as he took to the air, "I'll suppose I'll see you later." And with that Brolly blasted off as he followed Gohan to the capital.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

While Gohan was fighting Brolly…

Kakkarot turned was flying through the air as he returned to his broken home.  Tears threatened to blind him as the thought of having to bury his dead mate surfaced yet again.  When they had gotten to the palace Goten, Trunks, Karie and Videl were all put into regeneration chambers.  Karie, Goten and Trunks were in one room while Videl was in a second one by herself.

Bulma had gone into hysterics when she learned of her son's condition and hadn't left his regeneration chamber since he arrived.  Worry had clouded her face as she watched her son.  Vegeta had left the room almost as soon as he put his son in the chamber.  He went to control command room so he could get a view of the battle against Brolly.

Vil'Tani had stood staring at Goten for a while as he floated in the liquid fluid inside the regeneration chamber before she followed Vegeta to the central command room.  She too wanted to view Brolly's destruction.

Kakkarot hadn't gotten that luxury.  He still had a corpse to pick up.  Kakkarot soon reached the crater where the rubble of his home stood.  He slowly floated to the ground and walked over to Chichi's corpse.  Kakkarot slowly knelt down and picked her up and tears began to stream down his face.  A noise to his left brought him back to the present.  Kakkarot looked into the woods and saw a small shadow detach itself from the forest.  The shadow soon evolved into Pan as she walked forward, confusion in her eyes.

"Grampa… Why does grandma Chichi look like that?"  Pan asked in confusion, "And why isn't she moving?"

Kakkarot looked over at Pan, sadness in his eyes, "You grand mother is… taking a rest, a long, long rest.  You'll see and talk to her again eventually.  Don't worry Pan.  Now climb onto my shoulders… we have to get going."  Kakkarot said gently.

Pan nodded and smiled, "Okie." Pan said as she ran over to Kakkarot and jumped onto his shoulders, "PIGGY BACK RIDE!"  Pan squealed in delight as Kakkarot flew off.

On the way back to the capital Kakkarot reached out with his senses and found something disturbing.  Gohan was hovering over the capital city.  That in it self wasn't disturbing, it was the way his life force felt, and the fact that Brolly was closing in on him.  Kakkarot frowned and erected a shield around Pan as he went even faster.  Pan squealed in delight as the scenery went by in a flash.

------------------------------

Elsewhere…

Gohan stared down at the capital with an evil smile on his face, "Ready or not Vegeta, here I come."  Gohan whispered to himself and raised his right hand.  The shield around the capital shudder, cracked, and exploded inwards as Gohan released his energy.  Everyone within the city looked up as the shield that protected the city exploded.  Thousands of saiyan warriors rushed to the cause of the detonation and stared in shock at Gohan.

Gohan completely ignored the saiyan warriors and just blasted through them, towards the palace.  The energy that Gohan gave off as he flew towards the palace was so violent that it tore apart all the saiyans that were near his aura.  As Gohan reached the palace he didn't bother with doors, he just punched through the roof.  Gohan kept flying through walls and floors as he took the straightest path to Vegeta.

Gohan burst through one last wall, appeared in the control room and came face to face with some very shocked faces.  Vegeta's face quickly turned from shock to anger, "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING GOHAN!"  Vegeta roared in Gohan's face.

Gohan didn't flinch, "What am I doing?  What does it look like I'm doing?"  Gohan asked as he grabbed Vegeta by the throat and slowly lifted the king off the ground.  Vegeta brought his hands up to Gohan's and tried to pry his fingers off from around his throat.  Gohan just frowned and slowly began to squeeze his fingers.  Just when Vegeta was about to pass out from lack of oxygen when two boots planet themselves in the side of Gohan's head and sent him flying through the far wall.

Vegeta hit the floor and gasped for breath before he looked up.  There stood Brolly, at full strength staring in the direction where Gohan had went, "What?  What the hell is going on?"  Vegeta asked, confusion taking precedent over everything else.  Vil'Tani and everyone else in the control room were staring in shock at Brolly.

"I'm sorry my king, but there isn't any time to talk.  We have a possessed super saiyan to deal with."  Brolly said.

Vil'Tani and Vegeta shared shocked looks, "Possessed?  What are you talking about?"  Vegeta demanded

"The pendant that…" Brolly wasn't able to say anymore as Gohan's fist slammed into his face and sent him flying through several walls.

Vegeta looked at Gohan and noticed for the first time the pendant that used to be around Brolly's neck now adorned Gohan's.  _Oh shit_, Vegeta thought as Gohan turned his head to regard him.  Gohan raised his hand and fired a massive blast at Vegeta, which was promptly incased in a very strong shield and guided out through the hole that Gohan had created when he entered the palace.  Aoria and Horial appeared beside Vil'Tani along with a few of their guards.  Brolly soon reappeared as well and stopped beside Vegeta.

Gohan stared at them, anger evident in his face, "You!  You are the meddlesome pests that have been interfering with me!"  Gohan snarled at them.  Gohan was about to go on the warpath when he suddenly stopped.  He grabbed his head and fell to his knees, "ARGH!  STOP!  WHO THE HELL ARE YOU?!"  Gohan roared out at no one.  People were looking every which way as they tried to figure out whom Gohan was addressing, "GET OUT OF MY HEAD!"  Gohan yelled again at nothing, "THAT'S IT!  I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU!"  Gohan roared again before he blasted through another wall as he headed towards his new destination.

Vegeta's eyes widen as he realized what was happening, "SHIT!  He's going after Videl!"  Vegeta yelled and blasted after Gohan.  Brolly wasn't far behind and the rest soon followed.

Gohan smashed through another wall and appeared in a room filled with regeneration tanks.  Only one of them had an occupant and Gohan stomped over to that one, totally oblivious to everything else in the room. "I can't stand having you in my head."  Gohan snarled as he stared at Videl as she floated in the liquid.  Videl slowly opened her eyes and regarded Gohan sadly, but with love shining in her eyes.

Gohan raised his fist and slammed it through the glass of the regeneration chamber as a single thought rang through his head, _Gohan… I will always love you…_

To be continued…

Incase you are wondering, Videl's wound wasn't that serious.  She would have only died by blood loss, nothing else.  None of her internal organs were damaged, except the womb.  Just think how fast a pregnant woman recovers from having a.... what the hell is it called…  Women that have triplets or more get it; it's when they have their stomach opened up because it takes to long for all the babies to come out the normal way.  Anyways, just think of that, except a bit more violent, ok a lot more violent, and that's what she went through.  It was more the shock of having her child ripped out and crushed that downed her.  If she weren't pregnant she more then likely would have kept on fighting despite the wound.

Sorry for such a small chapter.  I would have gone longer… but that is the PERFECT place to stop :) hehe.  Anyways, I'll try to get my next chapter out soon.  I know you are all dieing to see what happens next.

Hope ya liked the chapter, I do.  You know what, its nice to have reviews, because at least then I'll know if people are even bothering to read it.  I'm not a review monger like most.  Don't care if you review or not, after all I'm writing this story for myself, but it's nice to know that people are actually reading it.


	9. Chapter 8: Salvation

Ok… one things… there may be some grammar mistakes in this…  but stay with me.  I really don't feel like re-reading the entire damned thing.  There is just WAY too much and I'm too tired…  Besides, there should be very little grammar mistakes in comparison to how much was written.

                                                                                                      **Chapter 8: Salvation**

Gohan raised his fist and slammed it through the glass of the regeneration chamber as a single thought rang through his head, _Gohan… I will always love you…_

Vegeta and Brolly arrived in the room just as the glass shattered.  The hand flew past Videl's head and missed it by mere millimeters.  Vegeta and Brolly were about to attack Gohan but stopped as Gohan stumbled back.

"STAY DOWN!  This is MY body now, not yours!"  Gohan yelled out, his voice wasn't directed at anyone in the room, rather someone inside his body, "I will NOT tolerate you regaining control!  You don't even know how to fully utilize your power!" Gohan stumbled around the room and his face contorted into a grimace, "NO!  YOU CAN'T DO THis…" Gohan trailed off as he shuddered violently and the pendant that was clasped tightly around his neck flickered violently.  All of a sudden Gohan looked up and at Videl and back away, horror in his eyes, "Oh no… what did I almost do…  how… I'm so sorry Videl…" Gohan whispered and turned to run.

Before Gohan could go anywhere the pendant flashed a brilliant cyan color.  With a wail Gohan collapsed to the floor and clutched his head in his head and began to scream.  Videl, not giving her nudity a second thought, tore the mask off her face and rushed to Gohan's side.  She quickly wrapped her arms around Gohan's body and hugged him tightly to herself.  _It's ok Gohan, I'm here for you, fight it, you must fight whatever is inside of you_, Videl sent to him through their bond.

Gohan fought with all his might but he began to lose control once again.  His eyes began to turn a cyan color as the creature within him struggled even more furiously to take control of the body back.  Gohan's body shuddered violently and began to shake uncontrollably as the titanic struggle within started to draw to a close, for the worse.

All of a sudden a small voice piped out of nowhere, "DADDY!"  Pan cried as she jumped off Kakkarot's shoulder and ran to her father.  By this time the three generals that had arrived to help Vegeta had joined Brolly and the king.  When Pan reached her father she jumped on him and hugged him tightly, "DADDY!  Daddy?  Daddy, what's wrong?"  Pan asked as she looked into her fathers eyes, "Daddy… speak to me…" Pan asked, but Gohan didn't respond.

"Pan… Your father is in… trouble at the moment.  This isn't a safe place to be."  Videl said to Pan.

Pan looked from her father to her mother and then back again, "Daddy?  What's wrong daddy?"  Pan cried as she began to pull on Gohan's battle suit but Gohan didn't respond, "Daddy, why won't you speak to me?"  Pan said but when no response was forth coming tears began to form in her eyes and stream down her face.

Gohan slowly looked up at her daughter, his eyes totally cyan except for the teal pupil, "P... Pan…" Gohan gasped out as he reached out to wipe the tears from Pan's eyes.  When the liquid touched Gohan's finger he snarled in anger, not at Pan, but at the being inside of him.  Gohan's body shot up and floated a foot off the ground as he arched back and roared in rage.  A massive aura erupted from around him; half of it yellow while the other half was cyan.  The two sides fought one another violently across Gohan's body as his eyes flashed from pure cyan, to their regular color, and back again.  A shockwave rippled out from Gohan as the two forces fought a massive internal battle against each other.  The shockwave slammed into the walls of the room, destroying most of the equipment.

 Videl grabbed Pan and backed up away from Gohan.  Vil'Tani dashed across the room and grabbed a spare set of battle armor, which just happened to be royal battle armor, and threw it at Videl, "Here put this on.  I don't think Gohan would appreciate you walking around naked."  Vil'Tani said and tried to block the men from looking at Videl.  Horial walked over and just sat down, giving Videl a big wall and ample room to change behind without being spied upon.  Videl didn't waste any time getting change but Vegeta was furious.

"HEY! THAT BATTLE ARMOR IS FOR ROYALTY ONLY!"  Vegeta yelled at Videl and Vil'Tani.  Bulma walked in and slammed a ki pan into the back of Vegeta's head.

"Shut up Vegeta!  Videl can wear that if she wants, it's not like she isn't already part of the family.  She, and the rest of her family, is as close as anyone gets to being royalty without having the actual blood."  Bulma said to Vegeta calmly, "And if you have a problem with that I'll just… revoke certain privileges from you."  Bulma said with a grin on her face.

Vegeta became quiet and quickly dropped the subject.  Vegeta frowned as another shockwave rippled out from Gohan, this one tore most of the walls down, "We have to do something about Gohan or he'll destroy the entire palace!"  Vegeta stated and became deep in thought.

"Don't worry King Vegeta, I know what to do."  Aoria said before he concentrated inward.  Very soon a massive shield erupted around Gohan that prevented anything from entering or leaving with two exceptions.  The only thing that could enter was oxygen and the only thing that could leave was carbon dioxide.  Sound couldn't even penetrate through the barrier, "Will that do King Vegeta?"  Aoria asked.

Vegeta looked over at Aoria and back at Gohan before nodding, "Yes, Yes I do believe that will work fine."  Vegeta said, "Now all we can do is sit back and wait for the outcome of this… conflict."  Vegeta said as he leaned against one of the ruined walls.  Videl looked worriedly at her mate as she held Pan tightly in her arms.  Outside the barrier everything had settled down, but on the inside it was a whole different story.

-------------------------------

Inside Gohan's mind…

Gohan and the creature strained against one another.  Their hands were locked together and lightning flashed around them.  The background was nothing, literally nothing.  Darkness stretched for an eternity on all sides of the two combatants.  The only other thing within the blackness was a single, glowing ball of energy, about the size of a house in comparison to Gohan and the creature.  The ball housed all of what Gohan was.  He who controlled the energy ball, controlled Gohan and it was for the possession that, that the two fought.

The creature grinned and slammed a couple of energy tentacles into Gohan, sending the saiyan flying away.  The creature chased after Gohan and slammed a couple more tentacles into his body.  Gohan screamed in pain for a second before rage overcame the pain.  Gohan recovered and flashed upwards and slammed his head into the beast's chest.  The creature rocked forwards, giving Gohan ample opportunity to slam his knee into the creature's face, which is exactly what he did.

The creature's head rocked backwards a little but was otherwise unhurt. It brought its head back down and slammed it into Gohan's.  Gohan shuddered and was unprepared for the kick to the chest.  Gohan would have flown back if it weren't for the fact that his arms and legs had been caught.  The creature held Gohan up with two tentacles holding each limb.  Gohan struggled but to no avail. The creature glared at Gohan before its eyes widen and glowed brightly.

A force slammed into Gohan's body, but it didn't physically hurt him, it hurt him spiritually.  Gohan screamed in pain as he felt his soul get injured by the attack.  Again and again the creatures eyes flashed and again and again Gohan's body shuddered as he screamed in agony.  When the next blast hit Gohan nothing happened.  Gohan raised his eyes and glared at the creature and slowly brought his arms and legs in.

When he had almost curled into a ball Gohan violently thrust his limbs out and let out a massive area blast.  A wave of energy roared from his body and consumed the creature.  The creature shook the attack off and stared at Gohan in anger.

Gohan stared back with equal intensity, "Get out of my body! NOW!"  Gohan roared at the being.

"No.  Your body and power will be mine.  I need it… to escape.  And. I. Will. HAVE IT!"  It shouted at Gohan.

"If you needed the energy to escape, why didn't you use Brolly's?!"  Gohan asked, his voice deadly quiet.

"Because he is not strong enough.  I knew if I got you mad enough you would snap and come to realize more of your power.  All the death that I have caused, the south quadrant, those planets here, your friends and family, was to get you angry.  Killing all of them was for the sole purpose of getting you to snap!"  It said with satisfaction, "And now that you have, you have enough power to free me, and I will take it!"

"No, I don't have the power to free you!"  Gohan snarled through clenched teeth, "I have the power to destroy you!"

It threw its head back and howled in laughter, "You actually think you can beat me?  A race of beings, each of them as strong or stronger then you failed to beat me.  AN ENTIRE RACE!  Your race.  I beat them all, all at once.  What makes you think you can beat me?  And alone?"  It asked.

Gohan grinned evilly, "If you beat them… then why are we still alive?  And why are you… stuck where ever you are stuck?"  Gohan asked.

"Fool!  You may be alive, but I sent your race back to the Stone Age!  And on top of that, I threw you race back a step on the evolution ladder.  A step that your race as a whole will never gain back."  It cackled for a second before it double over as Gohan planted a fist into its stomach.

"SHUT UP!"  Gohan roared and kicked it in the side of its head.

The creature flew through the air for a few seconds before it righted itself.  The smile was no longer on its face, being once again replaced by a scowl, "Stupid mortal!  I will crush your mind here and now!"  It snarled as it attacked.

When the two met a shockwave erupted from where their fists met followed by subsequent shockwaves as more fists collided together.  The creature soon grew tired of it and started throw its tentacles at Gohan as well.  Gohan picked up his pace and began to furiously block the onslaught.  _Damn, I can't keep this up, he's too strong and has too many ways to attack_, Gohan thought, and just to drive the point home he made a slight error in the position of his arm and gave the creature an opening. 

A tentacle slammed through the opening and smashed into Gohan's chest.  This caused him to become slightly unstable and become open to even more attacks.  Soon he was getting hit from all sides by fists, feet and tentacles.  Gohan screamed in pain as the blows rained down on him.  When the creature halted its assault, Gohan floated away, unconscious and badly beaten from the attacks.

It smiled and turned its back to Gohan to face the pulsating ball of energy, "I'll finish you off when I retake control.  I made a mistake of torturing you by letting you see through my eyes.  I won't make the same mistake twice."  It said over its shoulder to Gohan as it headed towards the ball of energy.

As it reached the ball a flash of light lit the area up followed by a massive explosion, a shockwave and a scream as the creature was thrown back, away from the energy ball.  The creature turned to look at Gohan to see him staring at him with an evil smile on his face, totally healed and fine.

"I don't understand, how is it possible, I beat you!"  It protested.

Gohan slowly approached the creature, "You may be smart, and powerful, but you are not wise.  You do not understand the saiyan mind or anyone's mind for that matter.  You forget one little thing.  Once I lured you into this portion of my mind you left yourself completely vulnerable to me."  Gohan said as a malicious look appeared in his eyes.  Gohan stopped his approach before continuing, "Inside my mind, 'I' am God.  I make the rules, and I can break them however I see fit.  Inside my mind, inside this place, the events that occur only occur because 'I' want them to.  Inside here, I am in complete control.  Inside my body you were in control, because you had more power.  Inside here… it's a whole different story and I have no intention of letting you back into my body!"  Gohan stated as he once again began to approach the creature.

The creature's eyes widened in horror, "No, that's not possible.  I AM STRONGER!"  It yelled at Gohan.

"So?  Strength of body and spirit mean nothing inside the mind."  Gohan said, "Enough of this, I am through with petty talk." And with that Gohan attacked, but not physically.

The darkness seemed to turn against the creature as a massive shield formed around the pulsating light.  The shield was soon covered by a planet and that planet. in turn, by another shield and a defense system far more powerful then what was possible.  Physics ceased to have meaning in here as size, shape, weight, and time shaped and warped to fit Gohan's needs.  The darkness changed to space as the darkness took on the scenery of space just outside Vegeta's atmosphere.  The reality of Gohan's mind lashed out at the creature.  Tendrils of reality wrapped around its arms, legs and tentacles and spread the creature's limbs far as they could go.

The creature struggled against its constraints but stopped as Gohan began to roar.  It quickly looked up at Gohan and increased its struggles two-fold.  Gohan had spread his arms and legs apart and was gathering energy in front of him.  Energy that did not exist, should not exist, but did exist, seemed to gather at specific vortexes in front of Gohan.  There were five vortexes in all.  One in front of each palm, one in front of each foot and the last, and largest one, in front of Gohan's chest.  With a massive yell with the force to shatter planets Gohan let released his energy.  The energy exploded outward but nothing happened.  The creature looked at Gohan in confusion as it wondered what had happened and why Gohan was still yelling.  All of a sudden it jerked back and screamed in agony as an invisible force slammed into it.

The creature kept on screaming as the force kept on ripping through him.  Gohan kept pushing more and more energy that did not exist through the creature's body.  Soon the body began to dissolve and break apart as it struggled within its confines.  The pieces that broke off were held in place, not because something was holding them there, simply because Gohan willed them to stay.  More and more of the creature began to dissolve until all that was left was a central core where the creature's head used to exist.  Gohan focused his attack into a singular beam with the diameter of the core.  The core shuddered under the assault and began to crack.  All of a sudden it tore apart and exploded as it was disintegrated by Gohan's mind.  The resulting explosion tore through Gohan and nearly broke his mind as he tried to contain it.  With a scream Gohan was thrown through the shield around the planet, the planet itself and into the core of his being.

With a shudder Gohan was brought back into reality as the ravaged regeneration room came into focus.  The pendant from around his neck snapped and fell from his neck.  It kept falling and when it hit the floor it shattered into a million pieces.  A wind rose up from the crystal in the center of the pendant and blasted away.  The pieces of the pendant shifted and altered from as they coalesced into three separate balls of energy.  The balls of energy shot through the walls and headed into three different directions, Gohan's home, Vegeta's room and the storeroom.

Gohan was tired, incredibly tired and the strain of the mental battle he went through was clearly shown on his face.  The saiyan, exhausted, dropped out of the air and out of his ascended state only to be caught by Videl who gently lowered him to the ground.  Videl hugged Gohan to her tightly and Pan hopped into her fathers lap.  Aoria sighed in relief and sent a mental message to his men, congratulating them.

"He'll be fine, the presence I felt inside him is gone.  It left just before the pendant shattered."  Aoria said to every gathered in the room.

A collective sigh of relief was heard throughout the room.  The thought of having to deal with a possessed Gohan wasn't something they were too fond of.  Everyone began talking at once but no one could be heard because everyone was talking, with the exception of Vegeta and Gohan.  The first being too reserved and the latter too tired.

The talking went on for a few minutes before Vegeta had had enough, "QUIET!"  Vegeta roared and everyone within the room fell silent, "That's better!  We aren't going to get anywhere with all of you idiots yapping!"  Vegeta said, only to be hit in the back of the head by Bulma, "AHH!  I wasn't referring to you when I said that!"  Vegeta whimpered.

Bulma smirked, "That's good to hear, but I do agree with you.  Gohan how about you tell us what happened from the time you blasted off after Brolly.  I'm pretty sure everyone already knows what happened up to that point."  Bulma said but a few people protested, "Anyone want to dispute me?"  Bulma said as she waved her ki pan threateningly.  The ones that had protested quieted down.

Gohan looked up from where he lay within Videl's arms, "Well… I chased after Brolly and I beat him into the ground… literally.  He could not stand a chance against me so I took the time to tease and torture him." Gohan admitted culpable, "Brolly got mad and began to draw power from the pendant.  I wanted him to get tortured, not stronger, so I tore it from him and threw it away…  Obviously it didn't fly far.  As soon as the pendant was off Brolly's neck his personality took a 180-degree turn.  I did not care one-way or the other.  I still beat him and was about to finish him when I heard and felt something click around my neck.  From that point on I struggled against something I could not see and was thrown out of my body to the back of my mind.  I guess whoever was in my body tried to take Brolly and the planet out.  It then went after Vegeta in the palace.  It seemed to have a total disregard for life as it tore through anything that was between it and its target.  You know what happened from there, kind of.  In the control room Videl spoke to me telepathically, and it obviously pissed the creature off.  It tried to kill Videl, but it had not counted on the body's reluctance to do it.  Even without me in control my body refused to harm her…" Gohan stopped as Vegeta interrupted.

"That's the saiyan bond for you!"  Vegeta said with a smirk, "A saiyan will die a thousand deaths before it let a hair be harmed on his/her mate.  And to try and make a saiyan hurt its own mate, even if someone else is controlling the body.  You're talking about the impossible."  Vegeta said and got hit on the head by Bulma.

"Let him finish Vegeta!"  Bulma said sternly.

Everyone laughed, even Gohan before he continued, "Well, once I saw what it was trying to do I grew even more angry.  I would not let it hurt Videl so I fought back for control harder then ever before.  I was able to gain some semblance of control but it was hard to maintain as it savagely attacked me.  I was on the verge of losing when I saw Pan's tears."  Gohan's face contorted into rage, "Now NO one makes my daughter cry, not without having to deal with ME!"  Gohan snarled out and quickly regain control of his emotions when he realized what he was doing, "Well, to make short story shorter.  I fought like a madman.  I forced him out of my body and into my mind and there I trapped him.  I learned something a few years ago.  Inside my mind, I am in complete control.  I make the rules and I can break them while still enforcing them upon the other.  I used that to my advantage and I destroyed the spirit that was inside me.  Destroying the spirit broke the pendant."  Gohan said as he finished his story, "That's about all that happened."

Vegeta nodded and took charge again.  He turned to look at Brolly, "Alright Brolly, tell me how the fuck you found that pendant and what your story is!"  Vegeta demanded.

Brolly backed away from Vegeta and bowed his head, "As you wish my king.  I was on some nameless planet down in the south quadrant.  I was there with my father and we were resting after doing some mercenary work for some ruler or another.  I don't remember his name and I don't think it's important.  He's dead now anyways.  I found it in the back of the cave we were resting in.  I picked it up and tried it on, not knowing what it was.  Next thing I know I'm no longer in control of my body, something else was.  It immediately brought out all my power and killed my father.  It then proceeded to destroy the entire south quadrant, but not before it analyzed each planet.  It seemed to be… searching for something.  Whatever it was looking for it didn't find.  But it destroyed every single planet, star and person in the south quadrant." Brolly let out a soft sigh, "It came here afterwards, to this quadrant and found what it was looking for. It appeared to me like it was some sort of… gate.  There was a tear in it and some movement behind the tear but I couldn't see it clearly, it was too small.  There was a grove on the door, like something fitted into it.  He frowned at it and tried to use me to break it down.  I think it wanted to let out whatever was behind there.  When I couldn't break it down he decided to go elsewhere and find something else.  It traveled to the nearest planet and destroyed it.  He found it found much harder to destroy then any other.  The resistance here is greater then it was in the southern quadrant so it decided to take out the head.  It knew that if the quadrant came together at it that it wouldn't stand a chance so it wanted to take out the head so the body would die, in other words you Vegeta.  It wanted you dead and your son.  He wanted the entire royal family destroyed so that the alliance would crumble.  When it saw Gohan it became… almost ecstatic.  It knew the depth of Gohan's power, and he knew that if he could someone… bring it up and was able to take control of the body then he would not have to worry about the alliance.  Gohan alone would have been enough to destroy any opposition.  You all know the rest, what he was searching for I have no idea but… I'm could tell that if it was able to give us this much trouble in spirit form… how strong is he normally?"  Brolly wondered.

"Bah, he was probably just some old forgotten spirit that you stumbled upon accidentally.  We've probably seen the last of him."  Vegeta said but before he could say any more Gohan spoke up.

"No, No we haven't seen the last of him.  He wanted my power… to free himself.  I think the spirit that trapped me and Brolly has its body located behind that door."  Gohan said.

Vegeta frowned for a moment, "So… there is some super powerful creature out there, trapped behind a door to some who knows what place right?"  Vil'Tani asked and Gohan nodded, "Great… and here I thought the war was over, although it didn't really last all that long.  There has been more bloodshed because of this… creature then in any other war."

Just then Goten, Trunks and Karie walk in and looked around the shattered room, "Damn, and I thought it looked bad from the outside."  Trunks said and was hit by Bulma.

"Don't swear young man!"  Bulma said.

Goten snickered and quickly moved away from Bulma.  Goten bumped into Vil'Tani and the two of them tripped and fell down.  Vil'Tani landed on her ass and gave a small 'umph'.  Goten fell on his back and his head landed in Vil'Tani's lap.  Vil'Tani and Goten became oblivious to those around them.  An idea formed in Vil'Tani's head as she traced a finger across Goten's cheek, "Hey Goten, I have a question for you."  Vil'Tani purred.

Goten's eyes widen and he jumped up and away from Vil'Tani, "AHH!! Karie!  Look what you did!  Now a girl is trying to crawl over me!  AHH!!!"  Goten yelled and ran from the room.

Vil'Tani frowned and stood up, "HEY! GET BACK HERE! I STILL HAVE TO ASK YOU A QUESTION!"  Vil'Tani yelled as she chased after Goten.

A second later there was a crash followed by a, "HA! Got you!"  And a, "NOOO!!!"

Karie doubled over laughing and was soon followed by Videl.  Everyone looked around clueless except Trunks who had a smirk on his face, "Lucky guy, already has himself a mate, and he doesn't even know it."  Trunks said.  Everyone clued in after that and more laughter was soon to follow.  Trunks laughed as well but a look of sadness came into his eyes that no one caught, _what about me_…

Vegeta talked to Aoria and Horial and thanked them for their help and asked them to stay for dinner.  There was going to be a massive feast for all those that had helped in the conflict.  They agreed and Vegeta felt certain that Vil'Tani would be there, especially considering that Goten wouldn't miss out on that huge feast and neither would his family.  Soon after that people started to go his or her own ways.  Gohan picked Pan up and the two of them flew home with Videl beside Gohan to get ready for the feast that night.  Landyn soon found Vegeta; he had been in a regeneration chamber the entire time.  His mate Alysa had scraped him off the ground and helped him recuperate.  After that Vegeta sent Landyn off to inform their other allies that the situation had been resolved.  Kakkarot left slowly with his mate, hoping to find a place to put her body so that it could be properly tended for later.  Bulma left to get ready for the dinner and told Trunks to do the same.

 When Gohan got home he noticed something very odd.  The painting of the first super saiyan was gone.  In its place floated a small crystalline sphere.  Gohan walked over to it and picked it up.  The sphere pulsated with a violent yet strangely comforting aura.  Gohan decided to talk to Vegeta about it later.  When Bulma got to royal chambers the painting of the first super saiyan that used to hang over the bed was gone, and in its place was a plate with a strange engraving on it.  Bulma took it and placed it on the nightstand, determined to question Vegeta about it later.

Soon night fell around the capital city and the feast started up.  All the important people that had participated in the fight against Brolly were at a long table that stretched down the length of the room.  The room where the feast was located in was the royal dining room, just off the throne room.  At the head of the table sat Vegeta.  To Vegeta's right sat Trunks and to his left sat Bulma.  Beside Bulma was where Chichi would sit and beside that chair was Kakkarot, looking glum.  There were two empty seats beside Kakkarot; the closet one was for Aoria while the one beside that was empty.  The next chair was for Karie, which was occupied.  Beside Karie was a chair with a lot of cushions for Pan so she could see over the table and beside Pan was Videl.  Gohan sat at the other head of the table with Videl on his right side and an empty seat for Horial on his left.  Beside where Horial would sit was Bardock who was chatting away quietly with Landyn on his left.  Like the rest of the couples beside Landyn was Alysa.  Brolly was position between Alysa and Vil'Tani.  Neither of them paid him much attention and he didn't mind either, still feeling slightly guilty over the deaths he had yet hadn't caused.  Vil'Tani was talking to Goten, finally able to get him to stay put so they could have a normal conversation.  Goten sat beside Trunks who, of course, was on Vegeta's right hand side.

Dinner hadn't been served yet, and wouldn't be until all of the guests had arrived.  Many of the saiyans were getting impatient and wanted the food to come but courtesy stayed their hands.  Just then the doors at the end of the dining hall, behind Gohan, opened up and the last two guests walked in, Horial in her power armor and Aoria beside her.  Aoria turned to the right as he spotted Kakkarot and sat down beside him.  Horial looked over at Aoria and turned to her left and approached the seat to Gohan's left.

"Are you going to eat in your armor Horial?"  Vegeta asked, mildly amused.

Horial looked over at Vegeta before she approached the wall behind her selected spot.  She turned to face the table and stopped.  A soft click was heard and the sound of air escaping was heard throughout the room.  The head, chest and legs of the armor opened up to reveal a figure encased in the armor.  The female stepped out of the armor and onto the floor of the dining hall.  She smiled at Vegeta, "Is that better your highness?" She asked.

Just about everyone stared at her with the exception of Aoria who already knew what she was.  "You… You're a Zioran!  I thought you were all weaklings!"  Vegeta gasped out and was hit on the side of the head by a ki pan.  Horial was 24 years old and stood 5'5" tall and had shoulder length green hair and light blue skin.  Blue eyes peered out from long dark lashes.  A perfect smile and petite nose graced her face that was planet on a round head that was situated upon a slender neck and perfectly figured body.  Her breasts were not large, but they weren't small either, most men would consider them perfect.  She was wearing a white blouse with a black over coat that went to her waist and wasn't buttoned up leaving the central part of her chest and stomach open.  She wore tight fitting black pants with a button and a zipper on the front of them.  She wore white and black sneakers upon her feet.

"Stop staring Vegeta!"  Bulma ordered and Vegeta quickly complied, as did all of the other men, not wanting to be on the receiving end of the pan.

"So what if I'm a Zioran!  And so what if I'm weak, with the help of the armor and weapons us 'Ziorans' helped to save your planet if you'll remember." Horial said as she walked over to her seat, "Oh and I suppose I could go by my real name.  Horial is the code name I was given when I became a high-ranking member of the military.  My real name is Alicia." Alicia finished as she finally sat down gracefully in her seat.

Vegeta nodded and cleared his throat, "Now since we are all seated here I would like to make a short speech… and then we are going to eat, anyone who tries to delay the food by making their own speech will get their ass delivered to them by me.  Now first and foremost, I would like to thank you all for coming to this meal.  We have had a hard and nervous week, and even harder day.  But we came through in the end.  Aoria, Vil'Tani, Hor… I mean Alicia.  I thank you and your civilizations for sending your support to our aid as fast as you did.  Without your aid the death toll would have been drastically increased and we may still even be fighting Brolly right this moment."  Vegeta took a deep breath before he continued, "Kakkarot, I am sorry for your loss… I know there is no way we can comfort your time of grief… but we will try as much as we can."  Bulma nodded sympathetically and reached over to place her hand on his shoulder.  Vegeta turned to look at Brolly, "Brolly, although we may have been enemies in the beginning…  I have come to accept that perhaps it was not entirely your fault that you committed the actions that you did.  I would… like to ask you to stay here and make a home.  My father made a mistake when he threw you out.  I hope to correct, or at least try to correct that mistake by welcoming you back and offering you a home here, among us.  It may take some time for the others to come to fully accept you but…  In time they will see like we do."  Brolly bowed his head graciously as Vegeta turned to look at Gohan, "Gohan… I don't know what to say to you.  You went from savior, to destroyer and back again without the matter of hours.  I suppose the end result is what matters, as with it does with Brolly.  Thrice now you have saved this planet from destruction, and there is nothing more I can offer you… except an invitation for you, your mate and child to become a part of the royal family."  Gohan began to protest but Vegeta cut him off with a raise of his hand, "I understand your concern.  You can still live where you are currently, that won't change, but you have done too much for you to remain as you are.  Although I hate to admit this… you have very nearly succeeded in doing more for the good of the saiyan race then I have.  Your advice over the past three years has been detrimental in making decision regarding foreign affairs.  Your duties when you become part of my family will be to take on full responsibility of off world concerns and relationships with other races.  You won't be able to declare war on anyone without my permission but anything short of that is up to you from now on."  Vegeta said and everyone congratulated Gohan on his raise in society, "I figured it would be prudent to do seeing how half the saiyans in the city have already seen your mate wearing royal battle armor."  Vegeta turned to Vil'Tani and Goten, "And you two… please wait a few years."  Vegeta said.

Vil'Tani and Goten exchanged confused glances as everyone around the table laughed out loud except Kakkarot who just smiled sadly.  Gohan noticed his sadness and had, had enough, "Father would you please stop looking so down?  It's not as if Chichi is gone forever.  All you have to do is go to Namek and ask them kindly if they could bring her back to life.  I did the same for Videl and Goten when Thraknor had them killed."  Gohan said.

Kakkarot's head whipped up as he stared at Gohan in surprise, as did most of the other people in the room with the exception of Vegeta and Videl.  After a few seconds of staring Kakkarot's face lit up with a smile as he realized Gohan was being serious.  Kakkarot sat back and sighed in relief and happiness before his stomach growled loudly.

Vegeta looked over at Kakkarot and smirked, "I suppose its time for the feast.  BRING OUT THE FOOD!"  Vegeta yelled and immediately the hall was flooded with servants as they brought gigantic plates of food and set them on the table.  The feast passed without much interruption or conversation as most of the occupants, being saiyan, were to busy eating to even think of anything remotely resembling coherent thoughts.  Even Pan had gotten in on the eating frenzy.  She had gotten out of her chair and was sitting on the table grabbing food and piling it into her mouth as fast as she could making more mess then everyone combined.  All of the non-saiyans just looked at one another before they shook their heads in amazement and continued on with their meal.

After the feast it was time to say good-byes.  Aoria left first with his men who were quickly followed by Bardock, Landyn and Alysa as they all went home.  Vil'Tani and Alicia were talking quietly away from the group while Gohan was talking to Videl.  Vil'Tani and Alicia approached the group and stopped in front of Vegeta.

"Vegeta, in a few months I'll have finished studying and learning every single trick and strategy my planet has to offer.  At that time people in my status usually journey to their allies to learn from them.  I was hoping that in a few months time I would be allowed to study and learn from the best here, on planet Vegeta."  Vil'Tani said respectfully.

Vegeta thought about for a moment before he responded, "Alright, I approve.  I suppose there's more then one reason for you wanting to study here but I can live with that."  Vegeta said and was about to turn before Alicia stopped him.

"I was thinking Vegeta.  Our two races have home worlds at almost opposite ends of the quadrant.  I think it would be prudent if we started to set up jump gates.  The scientist on my planet have developed short range ones, and it won't be to much longer before we can warp people to planets as far away as this one, or perhaps different dimensions.  A warp gate on each home planet would bind the races together that much more firmly, make relationships smoother and we could aid anyone anywhere at anytime within a matter of hours of the requested support.  I wanted your permission before we started to set up a warp gate here.  I was also think one on Cerian Prime would also be handy as well."  Alicia said.

Vegeta smirked, "Ahh, so that is what you two were conversing about over there.  I'll get back to you in a few days on that.  I don't see why that shouldn't be allowed to but I want to be able to mull it over first."  Vegeta said.

Alicia nodded, turned and walked to her power armor, "Well, I will be heading home now.  If you need aid ever again, just send a message and I'll be back with my men."  Alicia said as she climbed into the armor.  The armor closed around her and she slowly moved forward.  A few seconds later Alicia disappeared as she was teleported back into her ship.

Vil'Tani walked up and stood beside Goten, "I'm going to head home as well.  It's been nice fighting along side you Vegeta."  Vil'Tani said as she turned to leave.  On impulse she turned and kissed Goten on the cheek and grinned, "And I'll see you in a few months."  Vil'Tani purred softly before she broke into a giggle and was teleported away.

Goten touched his cheek softly and a blush slowly crept up his face.  Everyone laughed at Goten's expression, "Congratulations Goten." Gohan said through his laughter.

"Congratulations?  For what?"  Goten asked innocently, and became even more confused as everyone broke into even more laughter.

As the laughter died down the last good-byes were said and the three families went their separate ways.  Gohan, Videl and Pan to their home.  Kakkarot and Goten went to the rooms that were given over to them until a new location and home was found for them out in the forest.  Trunks went to his room and Vegeta and Bulma went to theirs.  Brolly, all alone with Karie shook his head in amusement, "Come on big guy, you can crash at my place."  Karie said as she started to push Brolly out of the room, "Just don't try anything funny.  I don't want to wake up to you snoring next to me, got it?"  Karie said.

Brolly nodded and allowed himself to be led out of the palace and towards one of the more luxurious houses near the center of the city.  The day that had opened up on such a sour note closed on a much better one.  Alliances were strengthened, new allies found, and new relationships formed.  But will all these stand the test that is yet to come?  Or will they crumble and shatter when the rage of the immortal is unleashed.

To be continued…

There you go, a MUCH longer chapter although there is a lot of end notes, oh well they explain a few… ambiguous things that occurred within the story.  The notes are to help keep the flamers down.  Hope you like it, I did, but then I like all of my chapters.  Probably because I don't post them unless I do like it :)

I did a mind battle with Gohan.  I figured it would be something like mental sparing but I had no idea.  I really don't care either; it makes for a better story in my opinion  :)

The creature actually did send the saiyans to the Stone Age, technology wise, but it's been a long time since then though, that's why they got the technology that they do.

Alright, the tentacles of the creature… Some of you may think they look like octopus' tentacles.  No, that's wrong.  If you want to know EXACTLY what the tentacles look like.  Look at Tyrael's wings from Diablo II.  They look exactly like those except they are cyan and each strand is by itself.  The rest of the creature's description will be divulged at a later date.

Just so you know, Cerians… well when they meet someone for the first time their 'soul mate' you could say, they know instinctively that he/she is suppose to be with them for the rest of their lives, even if the other person doesn't realize it.  Goten doesn't realize it yet, neither does Vil'Tani; she just knows that there is something about Goten that draws her to him. Trunks feels left out now that Goten has a girl but don't worry, I'll get him one before the end, don't you worry.

Whoops, I forgot about Bardock.  Oh well, he wouldn't of had a major part anyways.  I think I'll just say he was protecting the cities because Bardock is in charge of one of the portions of the saiyan army.

All right, for the feast I thought you might have wanted to know why Gohan sat the furthest away from Vegeta.  This is why…  the people at the two ends of the table are the most important.  Generally the king and his advisor/hero/most powerful being/god depending on race and civilization sit at the two ends.  The closer you are to the center of the table the less important you are, although if you sit at the kings table at all you are considered to be in very high standings.  The reason why chichi would be closer then Kakkarot is well… Bulma :) This goes for many of the places.   No one except Vegeta really cares about where he/she sits, except that they wish to be near the person they care for the most so their positions are often different then what they would normally be if it was just based on worthiness.  You might have also wondered why Brolly was there…  well the thing is that despite the fact that he caused so much damage, everyone, even Vegeta, although grudgingly, agreed that he had no control over his actions and thus could not be held responsible for anything except what took place after the pendant was taken away.  And from that point on Brolly had done nothing but helped the planet and its king.

Well, here are the power levels.  This part of the story is over, but I'm not going to post an epilogue.  Going to save that till the very end.  The next part of this story is well… I think I may give it a break for a bit.  Start concentrating on school for a bit.  Been neglecting that.  Anyways, these are the power levels at the various stages at the very END of this part.  Not in the middle, not at the beginning, at the very end after all is said and done.  These will also more then likely be the starting power levels for the next section.  There may be something I should say.  You may wonder why Trunks and Goten's base forms are so much stronger then Videl even though they were half as tough at the beginning.  Simple the massive boost to super saiyan increases someone's power level, when they are in it by many times.  But it also affects the base power level and boosts it up substantially as well so that the super saiyan level is only 4.5 times that of the base.  There's also the fact that both of them got beaten and mauled a whole lot worse then Videl did.

Gohan Super Saiyan 2 - 66,375,000

Gohan Ultra Super Saiyan - 33,750,000 – comes with a slight speed decrease

Gohan Super Saiyan -22,500,000

Brolly Legendary Ultra Super Saiyan - 46,200,000 – doesn't come with a speed decrease

Brolly Legendary Super Saiyan - 23,100,000

Brolly Normal - 4,200,000

Vegeta Ultra Super Saiyan - 20,250,000 – comes with a slight speed decrease

Vegeta Super Saiyan - 13,500,000                  

Vegeta Normal – 3,000,000

Kakkarot Ultra Super Saiyan – 23,625,000 – comes with a slight speed decrease

Kakkarot Super Saiyan – 15,750,000

Kakkarot Normal – 3,500,000

Karie Super Saiyan – 6,750,000

Karie Normal – 1,500,000

Goten Super Saiyan – 5,400,000

Goten Normal – 1,200,000

Trunks Super Saiyan – 4,950,000

Trunks Normal – 1,100,000

Videl – 1,000,000

Vil'Tani – 950,000 (well… that's what she is equivalent too in saiyan power level scales)

Landyn – 900,000

Bardock – 500,000

Aoria – 300,000 

Alysa – 110,000

Chichi – 100,000

Pan – 12,000 -- Big considering she's 3 years old.  My story, don't complain how wrong it is in comparison to the series.  The series never happened and never

                            will happen in this story.   That means no Tien, no little bald emperor dude, no Yamcha, no androids, no red army, none of that.

Horial – 37 (1,500,000 with power armor/weapons) (Doesn't need a power level, her power armor would make her more then a match for Goten at base although 

                                                                                  she would get beat if he went super.)

Now I want an honest opinion from people that do read this.  Do you want me to A) stop posting power levels, B) reveal them at the end and beginning like I have been or C) have a play by play power level reading in the story so as they get stronger you are immediately notified and by how much.  No it won't be at the end in the notes like they have been, they'll probably be in the story and I'll just make it so the people that can sense power levels have been refining it and have gotten it to the point where they can predict semi-accurate readings similar to what would/is shown by scouters.


	10. Chapter 9: Surprise Visits

Alright, I reposted chapter 8 and fixed a mistake in it.  I realized, due to a review, that there would be major political conflict if humans were slaves on planet Vegeta yet they were allies.  So I decided to change Alicia's race since it was the easiest way to fix it.  I'm not about to add in a huge explanation on how the two made peace or anything.

In response to another point in that same review.  Regarding Vil'Tani and Goten.  Well.  It's my story so there :P.  Actually what is Vegeta going to do?  Say no?  Gohan and Kakkarot will back Goten and Vil'Tani up, and Gohan alone can beat anyone down, let alone with Kakkarot.  Anyways, Vil'Tani isn't just any non-saiyan.  She's a high ranking general and official of another country.  Vegeta would see it as a political connection.  Another link that binds that race to him.  He may not want there to be breeding outside the saiyan race but, he's not stupid and he can see the advantages with improved relationships between the two nations.  He is willing to sacrifice a little bit of tradition if it gains him more power and influence.

You know what… I think I'll make a map of the planet.  I don't think anyone has done that yet.  Not quite sure how I'll show it… maybe in my bio.  You can put pictures there, but not big ones.  Oh well you might get the gist of it.

                                                                                      **Chapter 9: Surprise Visits**

Gohan walked through the forest towards the location of where his parent's house used to be.  The forest was filled with noises as the birds, animals and plants talked and sang, yelled and argued among one another.  To Gohan it sounded like nonsense as he could not understand any of it.  The light that seeped through the overhead canopy created patterns of lights on the forest floor.  The path he was taken was not at all natural.  It had come into existence when Gohan had rocketed through the forest to help his mate the previous week.

Gohan emerged from the forest and arrived at his destination, the war torn grounds where his parent's house used to exist.  The scars on the ground brought back unkind memories from earlier when the destruction had occurred.  Gohan's mother was back now.  Kakkarot had gone to Namek the day after the feast to bring her back.  Gohan looked up and to the south a little and saw the results of the second wish.  A floating garden was just barely visible over the tops of the trees.  Water appeared from no where to touch down in the center of the garden only to continue on and wash off all four sides in four straight streams.

Gohan smiled and shook his head softly.  He really couldn't begrudge his mother for wanting the best, and only, garden on the planet.  Gohan turned his attention back to the clearing and adjusted his mind back to what he had set out to do.  Gohan floated slowly off the ground and concentrated.  All of a sudden the ground erupted in a huge explosion that encompassed the entire clearing.

When the smoke cleared the majority of the clearing had been transformed into a massive crater.  Gohan raised his hands and waved his hands around in intricate and precise patterns.  Lasers tore into the ground and modified the bottom of the crater as well as the sides.  Gohan stopped moving his hands around and the lasers stopped cutting into the ground.  He slowly raised two fingers and concentrated once more.  A medium sized ball of energy appeared over the center of the crater and drilled down.  Soon the light disappeared from view but Gohan kept on concentrating.  Then there was a small detonation and water gushed out from the hole in the center of the crater.

Gohan floated back down to the edge of the crater and nodded at his handy work.  _Might as well make something useful out of this clearing._  There were to many bad memories associated with it the way it was, might as well make it a swimming pool_.  _I know that the birds and animals won't mind it to much if a new watering hole appears out of nowhere_, Gohan thought to himself as the crater finished filling up.  Gohan frowned for a second before he concentrated again.  A light glow began to emanate from the bed of the pond.  __There, that will make it impossible for the water to leak out._

Just as Gohan was about to turn and head to his parents house a splash erupted from the center of the pond followed by girlish giggling.  Gohan smiled brightly as his daughter Pan swam around in the pond, not caring that her clothes were soaking wet.

"Pan, Pan, Pan.  I barely finished making the swimming pool before you jump in.  What am I going to do with you?"  Gohan asked in mock seriousness.

"You're gonna love me."  Pan replied as she swam over to him.

Gohan smiled again and chuckled to himself.  "Well Pan, do not stay in to long and dry off before going home.  Mommy would kill me if she saw you dripping wet, clothes and all."  Gohan said, "I am heading over to grandpa's and grandma's.  Behave yourself alright?"

Pan thought for a moment before she flew out of the water and hugged Gohan tightly.  "I wanna go with you; I wanna see grandma and grandpa too."  Pan said.

Gohan smiled faintly and sighed as the front of his clothes became drenched in water, "Alright, let's go.  I want to tell your grandmother that her new swimming pool is finished."  Gohan said.

Gohan wrapped his arms around his daughter and gently raised his ki.  Soon an aura surrounded him and his daughter.  The water on the two of them and in their clothes soon began to evaporate rapidly.

"That tickles daddy."  Pan said as the aura finished drying her off.

Gohan smiled softly at her and placed her on his shoulder, "Well, let's get going."  Gohan said as he looked at his daughter and started walking towards the hanging garden.

The two entered the forest once again, this time heading south.  As they journeyed through the forest Pan kept stretching her hands out to catch passing leaves, branches and an assortment of flying creatures.  Pan dutifully stayed on her fathers shoulder, never once getting off it to chase a poor hapless creature around.  The genes that infect Trunks and Goten don't reside within her.  The two passed through the forest in a relatively quiet manor, quiet that is, for a parent with his child.  Although Pan didn't move to chase anything around, she was still quite noisy.  She was, after all, still a child.

After fifteen minutes of walking the two emerged into a clearing.  The clearing wasn't really sunlight, mainly because of the huge garden floating above the house in the center of it.  The four streams of water that flowed off the edge of the floating garden splashed gaily into four separate pools in the clearing.  A series of small streams connected the pools together making traversing the ground rather difficult.  The ground wasn't meant to be walked over though; all the residents of the house could fly, so there was no need to walk.  

Gohan jumped across the distance between the edge of the forest and the front of the house.  The young saiyan rapped lightly on the door and waited patiently for his mother to open it.  Despite living there for most of his life, he wasn't about to just walk in unannounced, no matter what he had to say.  Gohan didn't have to wait long before the door was opened up by his father.

"GRANDPA!"  Pan yelled before she jumped forward to latch onto Kakkarot's yellow hair.

Kakkarot smiled and began hopping around the living room with Pan flying through the air with her hands attached to his hair and giggling uncontrollably.  Gohan chuckled to himself before he continued through the living, being careful not to be hit by Pan's flying feet.  Gohan walked to the door into the kitchen and peered in.  The room looked much like it had before.  A table stood in the center with counters, fridges, and other appliances scattered at regular intervals on all sides of the kitchen.  Chichi surprisingly, or perhaps not so, was absent from the kitchen.

Gohan turned back to his father and his daughter.  "Father, where is Mother?  She's usually here in the kitchen."  Gohan asked.

Kakkarot didn't stop twirling around when he replied, "She's up in the garden.  She can't seem to leave it alone ever since she told me through the bond what she wanted for a garden as the second wish.  With Goten gone most of the time and you living on your own, she doesn't need nearly as much time to prepare the meals."

"That makes sense I suppose…  I just never really though of her doing anything other then cooking.  I suppose I will have to get used to this."  Gohan said, "I'm going to go check up on grandma, sweetie.  You behave yourself alright?"  Gohan told Pan.

"Don't worry son.  I'll make sure she's alright."  Kakkarot said with a smile on his face.

Gohan winced and made a mental note to hurry up and finish his conversation fast with his mother.  He didn't want to think about the trouble those two could get into.  A grandfather indulging his granddaughter, even one as level headed as Pan, could be disastrous if left for to long unattended.

Gohan quickly left the house, once again keeping an eye out for flying feet.  Once outside the young super saiyan lifted into the sky and flew up around the edge of the garden.  Once Gohan got above the lip he was able to clearly see the garden and all its aspects.  There were multiple levels to the garden, four in total.  Each succeeding level floated above the one below it.  There was a massive hole in the center of the top three levels.  A huge, nameless tree grew up from the bottom level and through each succeeding level until it towered above the garden.  The water poured down into the tree and the leaves were situated in such a way that the water was distributed evenly throughout the garden. Many exotic flowers, plants and trees were located in the garden.  None were really tall, or big, but all were unique, many of them were not native to the planet.  Bright reds, blues and yellows were visible in clumps all over the place.  The bottom level was dedicated solely to flowers, with the exception of the huge tree, while the one right above that was a bit more mixed.  The third level held trees as well as plants and flowers.  The top level held a single kind of flower.  The golden flower blazed with its own kind of aura.  It was among these flowers that Gohan found Chichi carefully tending the garden.

Gohan flew up to his mother and lightly landed on one of the smooth stones that existed on each level.  Chichi would kill anyone that would dare to step anywhere else in the garden aside from those stones.  Chichi looked up and smiled at her son as he landed.

"What a pleasant surprise Gohan.  This is the first time I've seen you since I was brought back to life.  What brings you here?"  Chichi asked.

"Oh not much, I just thought you would like to know that I made a swimming pool for you.  I did not like leaving our old home the way it was so I converted it into a more or less natural pond.  The water is crystal clear and will stay that way.  I wanted you to be the first to try it but Pan beat you to it."  Gohan said apologetically.

Chichi smiled tolerantly, "It's quite alright.  I think I'll drag Kakkarot over there some time soon so we can try it out.  Thank you Gohan, sometimes you are so thoughtful."  Chichi said.

Gohan shrugged, "It is no problem you are my mother after all.  It is expected for me to do something for you once in awhile after everything you had to put up with raising me."  Gohan said.

"Nonsense, you're an angel compared to Goten.  I can barely keep track of him now that he's turned super saiyan.  Him and Trunks have started to wreck even more havoc on the planet then Brolly did.  The only difference is where Brolly did damage to the physical aspect of the planet and its people, Goten and Trunks are wrecking havoc on people's minds."  Chichi said in exasperation.

Gohan shook his head, "I can only imagine what those poor people are going through.  I know what we went through and if it is anything similar…"  Gohan left the rest of that thought unsaid, "It took us years to finally become used to his antics.  More like numb then used to."

Chichi laughed at that, "I suppose that is true isn't it?"  Chichi said.

Gohan nodded, "Well, I should get going.  Even though it is nice talking to you again… I'm worried about Pan and father.  Who knows what trouble they have gotten into down in the hous…"  Gohan couldn't finish as Chichi cut him off.

"WHAT!  MY GRANDAUGHTER IS HERE!"  Chichi screeched.  Chichi jumped into the air and began to fly off to the house before she remember Gohan was there, "Don't worry about Pan, I'll take good care of her.  Go home and treat Videl.  She's been feeling down.  I think it has to do with the death of her unborn child.  Try and cheer her up will you?"  Chichi said, "Now excuse me, I got a granddaughter to huggle with."  Chichi finished and blasted out of the garden and down to the house.

Gohan's body shook as he silently laughed.  _The only thing that can take my mother's mind off anything is the mention of her granddaughter being near.  I should remember that if I ever get in trouble with her in the future_, Gohan thought to himself.

Gohan levitated into the air and began to slowly fly back to his home.  The last words of his mother were still sounding in his head.  He had noticed that Videl had seemed a little down lately.  He didn't know the reason and she avoided it whenever he asked.  It made sense now that he thought about it.  That kind of incident isn't something that is likely to just go away any time soon.  An idea formed within Gohan's mind and his face became set as he sped up.

It wasn't long before Gohan's house came in sight.  Gohan slowed down before he landed in the clearing where the house resided.  He opened the door and entered the house, closing it quietly behind him.  As the young super saiyan turned around he noticed Videl sitting on the couch with a slightly depressed expression on her face.

Gohan walked over, sat down to her left and decided to not let on that he knew why she was down, "What is wrong honey?  You have been down for almost a week now.  This is very unlike you."  Gohan said with a note of concern in his voice.

Videl looked up at Gohan gave a little smile, "It's alright Gohan, I'm fine, really.  There is no need to worry about me."  Videl reassured him.

Gohan shook his head, "I know there is something wrong with you.  You are very rarely down, and when you are playing with Pan always helps.  You have been around Pan a lot lately and it has not seemed to help any."  Gohan said as he put his right arm around her shoulders.

"Don't worry Gohan, I'm fine.  There is nothing wrong with me."  Videl repeated.

Gohan sighed and rubbed his hair with his other hand left hand and went on as if he didn't hear her, "Does this have to do with losing the child?"  Gohan said softly.

Videl's head jerked up with a stricken look upon it.  Videl didn't say anything but the look on her face, and more importantly the tears developing in her eyes, told Gohan the truth.  Wordlessly Gohan brought his other arm around Videl and placed her head on his chest.  The moment Videl's face touched his chest she started crying.  At first it was just a little sniffle, but it eventually broke down into full fledge sobs as her entire body shook with the force behind them.  Gohan softly rubbed her back and hair as he said gentle words of comfort into her ears.

After a while Videl lifted her tear streak face to look at Gohan in the face, "He killed our child…  I know it wasn't really… his fault but… I can't help but blame him."  Videl whispered.

Gohan nodded and hugged her tightly, "It is alright Videl.  Everything will be alright."  Gohan comforted her.

"I know… It's just that…"  Videl stopped, not being able to find the right words to express her feelings.

"I know how you feel, I feel the same way."  Gohan said softly as he gazed into her eyes.  Gohan moved forward and kissed her gently before bringing his lips to her ears, "We could always try again.  I know it will not fix what happened, but it might help."  Gohan whispered into her ear.

Gohan gazed once again into her eyes, and among the sadness was a glimmer of happiness.  Gohan kissed her once more, which was returned with passion.  The two of them slowly began to drift away into blissfulness.

*****WARNING****************WARNING**************************WARNING************

* Warning:  This next part will include sex.  If you are not of age or do not wish to read, DO NOT READ!*

* Skip down below to where there will be another box like this.  The scene will be finished then.             *

*****WARNING****************WARNING**************************WARNING************

Gohan lifted the front of Videl's shirt and slowly lifted it over her head.  Once the shirt was gone he kissed her again as he pressed his hands against her breasts.  Videl moaned softly as Gohan started to squeeze and fondle them.

Videl's hands were busy as well as they worked on the strings of her mate's pants.  Once the strings were untied she quickly dug her hands into them and began to play around.  Gohan's moans and slightly rougher treatment of her breasts were adequate signs of his pleasure.  Videl brought her hands down, taking Gohan's pants with them.  Soon it joined her shirt on the floor.

Gohan gently pushed Videl over onto her back on the couch crawled on top of her.  The two of them grinned at one another, happiness and pleasure sparkling in their eyes.  They both wanted this, and they both needed it.  Gohan brought his head down to her chest, ripped her bra off, and began to bite and suckle on her nipple while he rubbed the other one with his left hand.  Videl moaned and raked her hands through his spiky hair as he played around with her breasts.

Videl gripped Gohan's shirt with both her hands, and in a particular ecstatic moment, jerked them apart, tearing the shirt off Gohan's back.  Gohan stopped his playing and looked up at Videl's face with an amused expression on his face, "Enjoying this are we?"  Gohan said in a low voice.

Videl didn't say anything.  She just grabbed his head and kissed him passionately on the lips.  Gohan brought his hands down to Videl's pants and tore them off, like she did to his shirt, only he took the undergarment with him as well.  Videl smiled in mid kiss and murmured, "Now who's the one excited?"  Videl said as proceeded to tear off Gohan's undergarments.

Gohan smiled and pressed his lips against her as he used his hand to guide his reproductive organ to hers.  He slowly moved the tip of it up and down the opening in Videl causing her to moan in ecstasy.  Gohan kept rubbing it up and down for a few more moments before Videl whispered, "Please… Don't tease me… You know… How much… I hate it."  Videl gasped out.

Gohan smiled at her for a moment before he complied with her request.  He slowly pushed his member into her opening, pushing aside libido and the walls of the cervix alike.  Videl gasped and began to moan blissfully as he entered her.  Gohan moved slowly at first as he started up at steady rhythm.  As the seconds pass he slowly began to enter and leave faster and faster.  Videl gasped and moaned the entire time and as her mate built up speed she wrapped her legs around his waist and began to match his pace.

Gohan leaned forward and kissed her passionately, which was returned with equal fever.  The two young lovers wrapped their arms around one another as they picked up their tempo.  The looks on their face quickly turned into that of pure ecstasy as they reached their peak at the same time.  Gohan groaned at the same time as Videl's yell as they climaxed at the same time and relaxed onto one another.

The two of them looked at one another, both tired but happy.  Gohan slowly picked Videl up and got off the couch with him still inside her.  Videl rewrapped her legs around Gohan's waist when he stood and looked at him in askance.

"We might as well go to bed. We are tired and I do not want Pan walking in to us lying together like this.  She is still rather young to be learning about that sort of stuff."  Gohan explained as he slowly began to float up the stairs.

Videl just nodded, closed her eyes, and laid her head against his shoulder.  When Gohan reached the door to their bedroom he carefully opened it as to avoid disturbing Videl and closed just as carefully.  He floated over to the bed and slid the two of them under the covers.  Videl sighed in contentment and slowly drifted off into sleep.  Gohan laid his head on top of her head and soon joined her in sleep.    

*****WARNING******************WARNING*************************WARNING**********

* Warning:  The part above will include sex.  If you are not of age or do not wish to read, DO NOT READ!*

* Start below this box, the sex scene ends with this.                                                                                  *

*****WARNING******************WARNING*************************WARNING**********

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day…

Videl woke up to the sweet smell of food.  The young female saiyan stretched back luxuriously and yawned.  She slowly got out of bed and got into some clothes on before she walked towards the door.  Once the door was opened the smell of food became even stronger.

The sound of feet on the stairs alerted Gohan to the arrival of Videl.  Gohan peeked around the corner of the doorway leading into the kitchen and smiled at her. 

"How are we this morning love?"  Gohan asked.

Videl smiled and for once in the past week it reached her eyes, "Fine Gohan, just fine."  Videl replied, "What is that delicious smell?"

"Oh, you were asleep so I thought I would make breakfast for us.  You have had such a hard week that I decided you deserved this."

Videl smiled and sat down at the table, "How soon until breakfast is served?"  Videl asked.

There was a flash followed by a slight sonic boom and suddenly the entire table was filled with food.  "Oh, I would say about a few negative seconds by now."  Gohan replied with a grin on his face.

Videl just shook her head and gave a little smile before the two of them began to eat breakfast.  When they finished Gohan cleaned up the dishes while Videl went into the living room to relax.  Before she had a chance to sit down there was a knock on the front door.

Videl frowned for a moment and walked towards the door.  When she got there the door swung open.  Vegeta barged in only to get a ki pan hammered into his head.  Vegeta slammed into the floor and began to moan.  Videl stood to the side with her arms crossed, a ki pan in one hand, and a very large smirk on her face.

"What have I told you about barging into my house Vegeta?"  Videl asked sweetly.

Vegeta mumbled something incoherent as he slowly picked himself off the floor.  The saiyan king rubbed the top of his head and glared at Videl, "You know, hitting your King could be considered an act of treason."  Vegeta complained.

"Oh shut up Vegeta."  A voice said from outside.  Bulma walked in behind Vegeta and approached Videl, "I see Chichi has taught you well.  Shall we go?  Vegeta needs to talk to Gohan about something.  Probably has to deal with politics.  I hate politics.  I'd rather have deal with machines."  Bulma said to Videl as she beckoned her on, "Let's go over to your step-mother's house.  I want to see her garden." Bulma finished and started to walk out the door.

Videl glanced back at the kitchen for a moment before she followed the queen of the saiyans.  After the door closed Vegeta stomped over one of the chairs in the room and sat down.  He frowned at the blank spot above the wall for a moment.

"GOHAN!  Get your ass in here now.  I need to speak to you!"  Vegeta bellowed.

Gohan walked into the living room wiping his hands on a towel, "I am only in the next room Vegeta, you do not need to yell."  Gohan said calmly as he took the chair opposite Vegeta, "So why are you here?  It is rather early for a surprise visit."

Vegeta muttered something about Gohan and lack of abbreviations, "This isn't a social call Gohan.  I have need of you.  Since you are head of foreign relations… I think it's about time you went out and did your job.  You've been cooped up here on the planet for far too long.  I don't believe you've ever left it.  Excluding the time you wiped out an entire star fleet."  Vegeta said and paused for a moment, "I want you to go to the neighboring star system and act as my emissary to it.  The… government there has been slightly less the cordial with us.  They should have been able to reach us the fastest after we asked for help, yet we never even heard anything from them."  Vegeta explained.

Gohan nodded as he processed the information, "And you want me to go there and figure out exactly why they did not help you?  May I also hazard to guess that you want me to look for signs of rebellion and/or preparations for war against you as well?" Gohan asked and Vegeta nodded, "You think to use my… status as the strongest to bully them back into obedience, am I right?"  Vegeta nodded again, "You do realize they may have already anticipated this and are laying a trap for me or anyone else you send there?"  Gohan ended with another question.

Vegeta nodded once more, "Yes, I knew you were the correct person for your position.  You were able to read the lines.  If anyone is able to figure out what is going on there it would be you or me.  I'm too valuable to go so that leaves you.  You are also the most capable of getting out of any mess that might arise."  Vegeta said to Gohan as he once again looked at the empty spot above the couch, "What happened to the painting of Arthain?"  Vegeta asked.

Gohan didn't bother looking where Vegeta was, "Funny that you should ask that.  Ever since that amulet broke the painting has been missing.  However something was floating in the spot where it used to be when I got back from the palace.  I have been meaning to ask you about it but I have not been able to get around to it."  Gohan said as he got up, "Wait here while I get the sphere, it will only be a moment."

Gohan walked upstairs, grabbed the sphere from its place on the night table beside his bed and walked back downstairs with it.  When Gohan sat down he tossed the sphere towards Vegeta.  Vegeta caught the globe as it sailed towards it and began to examine it.  As Vegeta lowered the orb to get a better look at it, gold light began to emanate from it.  All of a sudden the glob shot out of Vegeta's and hovered over the floor in between the king and Gohan.  Suddenly, and violently, the orb exploded into tiny infinitesimal fragments.  The golden glow became brighter and brighter until it was impossible to see anything in the room.  Abruptly the light raced inwards and what stood before Gohan and Vegeta shocked them to their cores.

An ethereal form stood before them.  The being had long flowing gold hair that reached down to his waist and bright teal eyes.  A golden tail waved was wrapped around the figures waist.  The saiyan stood taller then either Gohan or Vegeta and was more muscular.  A golden aura pulsated lightly around him as he surveyed his surroundings.

The saiyan looked at Gohan and then Vegeta before he smirked, "Well hello there.  It's been way to long since I was last able to talk to someone.  Incase you didn't know, the names Arthain."  The ethereal super saiyan said before he turned to look at Vegeta, "I suppose you are the king of the saiyans since only one of the royal bloodline could unlock that soul sphere."

Two pairs of bulging eyes stared at Arthain in disbelief for a moment before Vegeta finally managed to find his voice, "Art-Arthain?  THE legendary super saiyan?  The most powerful super saiyan of all time?"  Vegeta asked incredulity.

Arthain frowned, "What's a super saiyan?"  He asked in a slightly disturbed tone. "I've heard of saiyans, evolved saiyans, hybrid saiyans and mutant saiyans, but never super saiyans."

Gohan finally managed to get a hold of his own voice and responded for Vegeta, "A super saiyan is a saiyan with yellow or gold hair.  You have gold hair like Vegeta and I.  That makes you a super saiyan."  Gohan said.

Arthain frowned at him for a moment before responding, "I'm not a super saiyan.  I've merely evolved beyond that of the basic saiyan and what did you mean by yellow and gold hair?  Did something happen while I was trapped that I should know about?  Everyone had yellow hair when I last walked.  You make it seem as if it is rare."

"That's because it is rare.  The majority of the saiyans have black and black eyes.  There has generally only been one saiyan every thousand years with yellow hair.  It's just recently that super saiyans have started popping up all over the place.  There are currently seven super saiyans, excluding yourself."  Vegeta said.

Arthain looked at Vegeta startled for a moment before he became enraged.  Both of Arthain's hands clenched into fists and his face took on a look of insaiyan rage.  His eyes flashed as nearly the entire eyeball became a bright teal color.  With visible effort Arthain calmed himself down and let his hands drop to his sides, "So that was the backlash she laughed about before I…"  Arthain trailed off.

"She?"  Gohan asked.

"Yes… She… Her name is Aerie.  It's a long story…  And I'm not in the mood for the telling of it."  Arthain said, his voice almost choked with emotion as he lowered his head.

Gohan looked from Arthain to Vegeta, "Do you have any idea what is going on?"  Gohan asked.

Vegeta shook his head negatively and was about to respond when Arthain's head whipped up with a snarl on his face but fear in his eyes, "FUCK!  She is almost free!"  Arthain cursed.

"She is almost free?  Who is she?  What's going on!  TELL ME!"  Vegeta demanded.

"She… Aerie, the one I imprisoned beyond reality.  She has already started to tear a hole in it.  Soon it will be large enough for her to start affecting events here in the universe. She probably already has judging from the amount of energy of hers that is scattered throughout this quadrant."  Arthain snarled out.

"So, who is this female?  You haven't said anything except her name.  How can you expect us to believe you?" Vegeta said in anger, confusion and trepidation, "And why is that such a bad thing?"

"She's was a saiyan, like me but…  You don't understand.  She has gone mad with power.  She found a way to tap into an unlimited source of energy and it drove her insane.  Now she is bent on destroying everything.  Not for the sake of conquest, not for revenge, simply because it exists.  We had to imprison her, because a side affect of all that power was immortality.  Every time we hurt her she would heal almost instantly, and with an unlimited store of energy, she never needed to sleep, to eat, or to breathe."  Arthain finished, "There isn't much time.  I say we have about five years before she is able to fully come into this universe, and we'll need all the time we can get to prepare for her."

"Wait a minute, who do you think you are giving ME orders?  You actually expect me to believe all this?"  Vegeta snarled out, momentarily forgetting that he was in the presence of his idol, "And what do you mean by 'we'?  You can't do anything like that.  You're just a ghost."

Arthain gave Vegeta a steady look before responding, "Do you really want to lose your empire along with your life, your entire race and the every other race and planet in existence?  No, I thought not.  Now unless you want to, preparation for her arrival would probably be the best course of action.  That is unless, you enjoy dieing."  Arthain said in a mild voice, "As for believing me…"  Arthain said with knowing smile on his face, "You'll soon believe me.  You won't really have much choice."

Vegeta flushed in anger and embarrassment as he grumbled to himself.  Arthain continued on, "Now, what I meant by we is now that I am finally free we can set out to finding my body.  From what I can tell, this young saiyan here to my left is the strongest being in the universe, stronger then the supreme gods themselves.  Which is odd, There should be many more of them and a lot stronger.  It seems only the children are still alive.  I wonder what happened and why the pantheon no longer exists.  Anyways from what I can sense, this young saiyan is the strongest, but he doesn't even compare to me, let alone Aerie.  Comparing a candle to a bonfire would be an appropriate analogy of how much stronger I am to him.  The same analogy holds true when comparing Aerie to me."  Arthain finished.

When Arthain finished speaking Gohan and Vegeta sat back and tried to digest the information.  Too much had come at them to fast and it left them in a daze.  Vegeta, trying to grasp onto anything coherent, returned to subject he had first been speaking with Gohan, "Ahem, well aside from that.  Gohan, I want you to leave tomorrow morning.  Don't bring your mate, I have a feeling this will be to dangerous for her."  Vegeta said quickly.

Gohan only nodded while Arthain shook his head and gave a silent, bitter laugh, "I guess I said too much to fast."  Arthain said, "Since I'm bound to you Vegeta, at least until my spirit is placed within my body, I think I'll follow you around.  I do believe you need time to digest what I have told you.  Just don't think to long.  If you decide to help restore me, it will take awhile and we, or I should say, you don't have all that much time to waste.  My situation won't change any if the universe is destroyed." Arthain said in an amused tone of voice.

Vegeta grumbled for a moment, "I'm going back to the palace Gohan.  Prepare for departure.  My mate will have filled yours in on what you are going to be doing by now so don't worry about explaining anything to her.  She'll know already.  Arthain…  Ahh… Well just come along, we'll worry about what to do with you when we get to the palace.  I'm not quite sure what a person in your position requires."  Vegeta said as he stood up from the chair and without another word left the house.

Arthain looked at Gohan in a strange way before he followed Vegeta out the door.  When the door closed Gohan leaned back in the chair and blacked out.

To be continued…

No, you won't find out why Gohan blacked out, you will in maybe 3 or 4 chapters, but not next one.  It's a secret.

So, how do you like the chapter?  I finally got one out after a long time. 4 months I believe.  Oh well, not sure when the next one will be out but… Well I left the chapter at a good part I think.  It's easy to pick up again because some interesting stuff will be happening next chapter.

Insaiyan = a new word.  We got inhuman for stuff that defies human ability to do.  I think inhuman is improper for saiyans, so its insaiyan.

Yay, I'm finally in the story.  I'm not really doing all that much at the moment but… Oh well.  I'll have a role, I'll kick ass, but I won't be the main character and I won't be the big end hero J.  That'll be… well we'll have to see.  It might not even be Gohan and Videl.  But it won't be me.  I can tell you that.  My next task… Making a map of planet Vegeta.

Another thing, the Namek dragon had three wish right?  Well all three were used, and if you are observant, you'd have already found out the third.  I'll make it more and more apparent as the chapters go on for those of you that can't figure it out.


	11. Chapter 10: Emissary

Well, I got my map done, just gotta scan it.  It's not all that great… as in there isn't much detail and I made a few mistakes but for those of you that actually care what my world of Vegeta looks like, just let me know. I have send it by e-mail because I gotta pay to use the picture box and I'm not about to give Fan Fiction any money.

Another thing is that, I want to fill the five years with lots of detail, but…  I think I'll have a little trouble filling it up with exciting things K.  If it is a little boring well… sorry, I'm not going to follow the DBZ style and just keep throwing out harder and harder baddies all the time until the ultimate big one because I think it's just ridiculous.  Gohan currently is the strongest living creature in his universe and that's not going to change until Arthain and Aerie appear in the flesh.  Because of that fact it's going to make it hard to fill the five years up.  I got some plans for the journey, and they probably will encounter strong enemies on the journey but… does everyone seriously want me to plod day by day for five years time?  I'm not sure if I'm up to making 300 chapters J.

Anyways, in response to Danny.  Who would hate Brolly?  All the dead saiyans?  There are very few saiyans still alive that witnessed Brolly.  Just the few soldiers that carried the even fewer wounded ones to a healing place and the hero's.  No civilian saw Brolly and lived to tell about it.  Everyone knew about an attack but very few saiyans know exactly WHO attacked.  If they found out THEN there would be an uprising… but we'll deal with that issue later J.  The few remaining soldiers can be ordered to accept him, and with all the hero's accepting him, why wouldn't they?  Sure he killed people but…  It's not like it was his fault in the first place.

Oh, one more thing, each chapter more and more hints about what the third wish will appear.  I'm not going to come right out and say it, but by the third chapter (like by chapter 11), if you haven't figured it out…  Sorry but you have to be pretty dense J.  Another thing, Goten and Trunks hit super saiyan easily in the series, they didn't experience any huge amounts of rage.  I think I know why.  A normal saiyan body can only handle so much power before it is forced to transform to contain it.  If a saiyan didn't transform their body would explode from the amount of energy they have inside them.  Well in any case, whether or not you believe that I think I believe it.  The one difference here is that Trunks and Goten had massive power levels in the series.  But if you had been noticing it has required less energy to become super in my story then the series, wanna know why?  Because I hate the ridiculously high power levels in the series.  Like Goku gets in excess of 1,000,000,000 in the series.  Ok… compared to DB that is just plain sick.  In DBZ A person could destroy a planet with 14,000, with 1,000,000,000 you can say good bye to the universe if he makes a wrong slip.  Anyways there are very few things that would make Videl go super saiyan from sheer rage and I really don't want to hurt Pan.  She's way to cute, anyways I'm thinking of having her train very hard and just naturally ascending because her normal body can't handle the strain of all the energy inside her.  Some of you may complain that well, Brolly's power level is 4,200,000 when he's normal and Videl's is only 1,000,000 so she would have to gain more energy then that to ascend naturally.  Well, here's my explanation to that (this applies to my story only), when a saiyan transforms to super they gain a lot of energy and their normal forms gain a substantial amount as well.  The ascension to super saiyan extends the amount of energy the normal form can handle safely.  A person who goes super can hold a lot more energy in their non-super form then a person who hasn't ascended.  As it is, Videl has reached the peak a saiyan can hold in their normal before they are forced ascend, which makes Landyn and Vil'Tani not far behind J. (Did I forget to mention that Cerians have their own special kind of transformation that they hit when they reach 1,000,000?  Whoops, I think I did).  Anyways, enough of my yappin, this should all be at the end but I put it here instead, on with my story!

Alright maybe not yet.  I really dislike proof reading my story, mostly because reading it right after writing it is rather boring.  So if someone wants to proofread it for me, just let me know.  My e-mail should be in my bio, if it is not, it's here, TarnoxForever@yahoo.ca  Just send me an e-mail if you want to…  The only thing is that I tend to…  Take awhile on some chapters.  So if you don't mind waiting a bit for the next one, give me a shout. I only request that you be fluent in English and you have a better grasp of the language than me.  No offense but many people that write DBZ stories have a very limited grasp on the language and suck with both grammar and spelling.  If you have any doubts as to whether or not you are good with both grammar and spelling, then you probably shouldn't e-mail me.  In case you're wondering… I didn't proofread this chapter…  I know there are a few mistakes, there always are.  It's late, I'm tired, and I don't feel like it.  Just be glad the chapter is out and if you care that badly… well…  I've said what you could do J.

**Chapter 10: Emissary**

An eye searched across the quadrant for a moment before focusing on something.  A grin creased the face as the mind behind the face set the plan into motion.

------------------------------

On planet Vegeta…

Vegeta ignored the strange looks he was received as he walked through the palace.  He didn't care what the people in the palace thought of the specter of Arthain, which was currently floating along slightly behind him.  It wasn't their place to question.  Arthain enjoyed the looks he was receiving and grinned at every passerby.  Consequentially it made the person jerk back and doubt the sanity of their own mind and it amused 'the' legendary super saiyan.

The strange duo casually made their way through the winding hallways of the palace.  It was the pace as much as anything else that disturbed everyone they walked by.  It's not often that someone casually walks down a corridor with a spirit tagging along behind him; one that is taking great pleasure and amusement out of startlingly people.  Never might be a word closer to the truth.

As it was the two eventually reached Vegeta's destination, his study office.  When the two had finally seated themselves in the somewhat secure location of the study room they began their discussion.

"So, what did you want to know Vegeta?"  Arthain asked in a slightly amused tone, still laughing mentally at the people they passed by.

"I want to know what you need.  Food, water, sleep, that kind of support."  Vegeta said calmly, he was desperately trying to keep a smile from forming on his face.  He wasn't going to admit that he enjoyed the expressions of shock he witnessed as they traveled down the corridors.

"Umm… As far as I can tell I don't need any of them.  Where would I put the food and water anyways?  The food and water just fall through me and make a mess on the floor although I doubt I could even pick them up.  As for sleep, I don't think I need sleep either.  If I do, I'll just hang from a ceiling."  Arthain said in a casual voice.

"I don't think we would want that.  It's bad enough walking through the corridors with you, if people saw you hanging from the ceiling sleeping I would end up with half the palace servants quitting."  Vegeta said as he mulled an idea over through his head, "I'll give you a room.  Even if you don't need it now, you'll need it later on when you have your body."

Arthain smiled faintly, "So you've finally decided to help get my body for me eh?"  Arthain asked.

Vegeta nodded, "Yes, I have.  You'll owe me for doing this for you of course, my aid isn't free."  Vegeta said.

Arthain smirked, "I didn't expect it would.  Here's a trade for you that you will find much to your satisfaction.  You get my body back for me, and I'll help you keep your kingdom."  Arthain said as he leaned forward and clasped his hands together.

Vegeta's eyes hardened as he frowned, "I don't see ho…"

"Didn't you hear a word of what I said back at that cottage?  You may think your race is strong, but you're nothing compared to what the saiyan race used to be."  Arthain said as he cut Vegeta off.  "Listen to what I have to say carefully.  Aerie is getting out; she has already touched Gohan's mind as well as one other here on the planet.  I can sense her presence anywhere.  She has also manipulated various other events throughout the quadrant.  If you are not careful you may lose your empire before she even breaks free."

Vegeta thought back to the previous week with the incident involving Brolly and Gohan.  The frown on Vegeta's face deepened as he continued to think. "Fine, I agree, but I want you to tell me of our history.  All we, or I should say, I, know of the past is within a single book.  I hardly think a single book covered most, or even many of the facts of the past."  Vegeta said, determined to get at least something out of the situation.

Arthain slightly nodded his head in accord, "I haven't got anything against that.  It'll make a good conversation while we travel."  Arthain said, "I won't begin revealing anything about the past until we start the journey to recover my body, I don't want you to get something for nothing."

Vegeta grumbled in annoyance for a second before the door to the study burst open and two golden blurs blasted into the room, hurdled over the desk, and slammed into Vegeta's chest causing him to fall out of his chair.

"Father!  What is this about me and Goten not being allowed to have another fort?"  Trunks complained from his perch on top of Vegeta.

"Ya!  Me and Trunks are bored, we want to play in another fort."  Goten said as he added his complaint on top of Trunks'.

Vegeta picked the two of them up by their golden hair as he stood, "After what you two put me through last time with your fort you want me to let you have another one?"  Vegeta asked incredulously, "You should be lucky I haven't punished either of you."

Trunks and Goten squirm free of Vegeta's grasp levitate before him.  The two little super saiyans looked pleadingly at Vegeta, "Please father, I promise I'll be a good kid and not disobey you again."  Trunks said.

"Ya, what he said."  Goten added.

Arthain gave a small chuckle as he watched the scene causing both Goten and Trunks to whirl around and face him.  The two became wide eyed as they stared at Arthain.

"Mr. Vegeta…  Why is there a spirit in your office?"  Goten said as he recovered from his initial shock and scratched his head in confusion.

"Don't call me Mr. Goten, it's just Vegeta.  I should make you say King Vegeta but my mate has a disturbing habit of appearing out of the blue to hit me when I try to force anyone in your family to call me that." Vegeta said before he answered Goten's question, "Now, I would like you to meet Arthain, if you stay around the palace you'll more then likely be seeing more of him.  As for why he's just a spirit, well I'm not entirely sure myself but he had better tell me soon."  

Goten floated over to Arthain and stuck his hand through him and stared at it poking out from the other side.  Goten wiggled a few fingers and scratched his head.  Arthain just raised his eye at Goten, "If you are finished sticking your hand through me, I do believe Vegeta is trying to get your attention."  Arthain said as he glanced at a fuming Vegeta.

Goten closed his eyes and scratched his head apologetically, "Sorry."  Goten said as he flew over to hover beside Trunks.

Vegeta eyed the two little super saiyans, "Alright, now that I have your attention, I won't keep you long.  You have a tendency to get side tracked easily with long lectures."  Vegeta said as he crossed his arms across his chest, "Now, first things first, you two are not going to be getting your fort back, but not because of the reasons you think."  Goten and Trunks traded nervous sidelong glances, the two of them didn't know where this was headed and it worried them, "Goten, your education is seriously lacking in some aspects.  Your mother has been teaching you a lot of different courses, but there are a few she has been… neglecting.  Beginning next month you will join the academy where you will begin to learn fighting techniques as well as fighting strategies and war strategies.  Your brother will not be able to juggle both of his jobs for long and will need someone to relieve him of command.  I intend to have you eventually command the army that Gohan currently does.  Although I do believe that Gohan will have to recruit new soldiers before he has an army for you to take command."  Goten's eyes widened and he opened his mouth to protest but Vegeta stalled him with a raised hand, "You've had enough play time already Goten, it's time for you to start earning your way here, and for you to do that you need to join the academy."  Goten sighed and shuffled his feet, "Oh, I thought you may want to know this, I agreed to let Vil'Tani study our war arts and strategies here so you will most likely be in all her classes."  Vegeta said and smirked as Goten's eyes widened in horror.  Vegeta turned to look at Trunks, "The same goes for you, you have spent to much time playing, it's time you learned what it means to be a Prince.  One day you will succeed me, and that may be sooner then I would like if what I fear comes true.  I plan on teaching you what it means to be King, and unfortunately, we may only have five years.  I plan on having you fully educated by then.  I will be going on a trip soon, and I will have Bulma watching over you to make sure you study well.  You will be in charge while I am gone, but I will again have Bulma watching you so you don't do anything foolish."  Vegeta finished.

"But… But…"  Goten and Trunks spluttered out at the same time trying to find ways out of their predicament.

Vegeta frowned and slammed his fist onto the desk causing it to crack, "I don't care about you excuses, you will do this and that's an order.  I refuse to allow all the potential you two have to go to waste.  Now, I have some unfinished business, I want you two to leave and get ready.  You two have a lot to prepare for, especially you Goten.  I have a feeling you will be learning more then just military strategies at the academy."  Vegeta said cryptically with a knowing smile on his face.

The two little super saiyans bowed their heads in acknowledgment and slowly made their way towards the door.  Just before they got their Trunks whispered something to Goten causing him to grin.  In a flash the two were gone.  Vegeta shook his head, sighed, and hoped that whoever they were going to torture wasn't going to be scared for the rest of their life.

Vegeta turned and spoke again to Arthain, "Now, where were we?"  Vegeta thought aloud.

"We were going to decide the details for the journey."  Arthain said, "I do know one thing, you will require a key.  I'm not sure where you will find it, although looking in a place similar to where I was being held may be the best place to start.  We'll need it to open the door."

Vegeta frowned, "Door?  That'll be easy enough, most of this quadrant is mapped out; there are very few abandoned planets to look at.  We'll just find the door, open it, and grab your body.  I thought this was going to be a long tr…"  Vegeta trailed off as Arthain shook his head.

"When I said door, I meant dimensional door.  My body isn't in this universe.  We need to go to another one."

Vegeta just looked at Arthain perplexed, "Are you trying to tell me there is a door somewhere that leads to another universe?"  Vegeta said incredulously.  Arthain nodded his head, "And your body is somewhere in that alternate universe?"

Arthain grinned and nodded, "Yup, you have it right.  In my time opening doors to alternate universes was a simple process.  Most of the doors had to be destroyed but there is one left.  It was on the saiyan home world, which is impossible to find unless you know where and what you are looking for."  Arthain said.

Vegeta just held his head in his hands and groaned, "Why do I get the feeling this is going to be one very long day."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A couple hours later…

Gohan flew through the air as he made his way to the capital.  Everything he needed was either on him or in capsules on the ship waiting to take him to Zyim.  The super saiyan didn't have long to contemplate his journey because he soon arrived at the capital.  Before he had even landed in front of the south gate the lasers were down and the guards were saluting him.  Gohan just shook his head as he walked through the gates.  He still wasn't used to his new station.

Once in the city Gohan took to the air once more and flew towards the ship that was waiting for him.  The only person that was waiting for him was Vegeta, with Arthain standing slightly behind him.  He had already said his farewells to his family and it wasn't like he was going to be gone a long time.

Vegeta nodded at Gohan as he walked up to him, "You had better not disappoint me.  Remember, you have full authority to do whatever it takes to figure out their allegiance and plans."  Vegeta said.

Gohan nodded before he looked passed him at Arthain.  The specter gave him an amused look before saying, "You may receive some… unexpected help while you are there Gohan.  Take care; I need you alive to get my body."  Arthain said.  Vegeta looked at Arthain in askance but the spirit just shrugged and grinned.

With that the goodbyes were finished and Gohan walked up the ramp and onto the ship.  There was not much to the ship.  There was only the cockpit, the engine room, the seating area, washroom and several bedrooms for long trips.  The ship was not designed to hold many passengers.  As Gohan seated himself in the sitting area the ship's engines came online.  A moment later there was a lurch as it took to the air.  Gohan sat back and relaxed, it was going to be a few hours before he reached Zyim.

As the starship took off Vegeta stopped gazing at it for a moment and looked over at Arthain, "What exactly did you mean by 'unexpected' help?"  Vegeta asked curiously.

Arthain just looked at Vegeta and grinned, "Oh nothing, nothing, you'll find out soon enough."  Arthain said with a laugh.

Vegeta growled as he glared at Arthain, "I would kick your ass if you weren't translucent."  Vegeta snapped.

Arthain just threw his head back and laughed even harder.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A few hours later…

The planetary shield around Zyim lowered as the ship entered the atmosphere of the planet.  Zyim was a jungle planet and over 80% of the planet was covered in it with only a few buildings poking out from the tops of the trees.  The rest of the surface of the planet was water.  The ship navigated its way over to one of the buildings that poked above the foliage at a steady pace.  As it approached the building the building opened up revealing a long hollow tunnel.  Gohan looked out the window as his shuttle ship slowly lowered itself down the tube.  The tunnel was easily wide enough to allow ships many times the size of the one he was on to pass through it.

"How far down do we have to go before this ship stops?"  Gohan wondered aloud.

His question was soon answered as a lurch signaled that the ship had finally stopped.  With a sigh of relief Gohan got out of his seat and walked to the exit.  The door opened to reveal a round platform with a walkway attaching it to the side of the tunnel.  Several beings were walking down said walkway to greet Gohan.  Gohan left the ship and approached the group of men and women that had walked out to meet him.

"Welcome to Zyim."  Said an elderly man, he stood head and shoulders above Gohan with piercing cyan eyes.  A heavy red robe hung from his shoulders with the front opened slightly.  He wore a breastplate made out of scales of some unknown, yet giant, creature.  Long black hair flowed from the top of his head that reached his calf.  Various rings decorated his fingers and a bracer could be seen upon each wrist.  The beings skin was a pale color and was almost translucent, "I'm Boreas, ruler of this fair planet.  The two behind people behind are Panthion" The other male in the group extended his two fingers in a gesture of hello, "And Ithildai." The only female in the group repeated the gesture of the previous two. "S… We have been expecting you."  Boreas said as he extended two of his fingers towards Gohan with his palm up.

Gohan mimicked the gesture before he replied, "It is good to be here.  I have some issues I would like to talk about."

Boreas nodded before giving a slight smile, "Of course, but first why don't we get you settled in first?"  He said.

Gohan tipped his head in acknowledgment and followed behind the elder Zyian closely.  Panthion and Ithildai closed rank behind him making him appear as if he was a prisoner.  As they left the walkway and entered the main complex Gohan extended his ki cloak to try to sense the life around and nearly staggered.  He couldn't pick out any individual ki signals due to the fact that nearly everything was alive: The walls, the ceiling, the people, the planet itself.  There were barely any inorganic objects and material on the planet, and the majority of it belonged to the shuttle he arrived in. _At least it'll be easy to get back to the ship if I have to get out of here in a hurry._  Gohan thought to himself and proceeded to take note of the twists and turns of the place he was in.

After a half an hour of walking the Boreas stopped in front of an oddly shaped door.  As he pressed his palm against the center of it a suction sound was created as the door opened up.  The door headed in all directions as it opened from the center outwards.  Boreas turned to face Gohan, "This shall be your room for the duration of your stay.  Please, make yourself at home.  The room is supplied with everything you will need."  Boreas said with an eerie smile on his face.

Gohan nodded and entered the room.  The door closed behind him as he entered the room light filled the room.  A soft luminescence filled the chamber without the aid of any electrical devices.  Gohan took this time to survey the room.  It wasn't large but it held everything he would need like Boreas had said.  A bed lay propped up against the far wall with a dresser beside it.   A table sat in the center of the room with several chairs strewn around it.  A small pool of water was located in the corner to his right with several benches situated around it and some hooks hanging from the wall.  An opening that apparently served as a window, located above the bed, gave a view of the outside.  To Gohan's surprise it was an entirely enclosed area.  Light filled the outside much like it filled his room, without any apparent electrical devices.  Vegetation served as the floor, walls and ceiling of the cavern.  Other Zyian's could be seen walking across the enclosed space as they headed to one place or another.

Gohan sat down on his bed and looked at the dresser and gave a startled lurch, "Oh man, I forgot my clothes.  I do not think it matters though because I doubt this will end up being an extended stay."  Gohan said to the empty room.  _Ah well, I might as well take a bath while I'm here, at least then I'll be semi-clean._

Gohan stripped down and proceeded to wash himself in the bath that was provided.  Although he had taken a shower earlier that day, he didn't know when he would next be able to get clean.

Once he was cleaned Gohan emitted a massive, but short, surge of ki from his body that evaporated all the water on it.  Gohan dressed quickly and walked over to the door.  He carefully placed his hand on the center of the door and it opened like it did before.  _This is as good a time to explore as any_.  Gohan thought as he exited the room.

Gohan wasn't used to not being able to separate one ki from the next; to him it seemed as if everything and everyone shared their life forces.  This disturbed Gohan greatly and he was constantly being startled as he rounded a corner and met someone unexpectedly.  As he went Gohan kept an eye out for anything suspicious.  At first nothing seemed out of place but as he walked through the hallways and into the enclosed areas he began to notice something odd about the people.  Many of them seemed fine and normal, but every single one of them had cyan eyes.  Everyone without cyan eyes had a smile on their face and everything looked fine, but Gohan could see that the smile never reached their eyes.  Their eyes had a look of hopelessness and pain.

It was then that Gohan noticed that he could pick out a few individual life forces, but of those without cyan eyes.  Gohan set his mind on one of them and began to follow.  The Zyian he was following was a small child that looked as if she was Goten's age.  She had chocolate brown eyes and small lips.  A small pert nose rested in the middle of her face and long pink hair flowed down to the base of her neck.  She was wearing a white short-sleeved shirt and a blue skirt that went down to her knees.  Gohan waited until it was just the two of them before he approached the child.  The super saiyan laid his hand gently on the girls shoulder.  The little girl jumped nearly a foot into the air and whirled around in surprise and fright.

"What is your name little one?" Gohan asked in a soft tone as to not scare her further.

As it was the girl could barely stammer out her name, "K-k-kat-t-ina."

Gohan gently rubbed her head in an attempt to calm her, "Do not worry; I am not here to hurt you.  I just want to know why everyone without a certain color of eyes seems to be in pain."  Gohan asked softly.

"I-I'm not allowed t-to t-talk about t-that."  Katina said in a scared voice.

"Who is going to hear you?"  Gohan asked, "It is just you and me in this hallway.  Besides, I will protect you from anything if they try to harm you."

"Will you?"

"Yes Katina, I will not let them hurt you."  Gohan said gently, "Do you know the answer to my question?"

Katina gave a little nod, "Y-Yes, I do…  I-I think." She said and looked around quickly before she looked back at Gohan.  Gohan gave a little nod and she continued, "There's… This whisper, inside my head, and a few others that I know…  It's telling us to let go… to… to go down."  She stops and looks at Gohan hoping it was enough.

Gohan thinks for a moment, "A whisper…  What does it sound like?  And what is it telling you to go down to?"  Gohan asked

Katina bit her lip before she continued, "I don't know exactly what it sounds like…  The voice sounds… like a girl but…  I can't describe what it sounds like exactly.  I don't know what it wants me to go down to…  I only know that those who do come back… different, changed.  They are no longer themselves.  They have no original memories…  Many of my friends have come back up not knowing me, yet knew others they've never been in contact with."  She paused for a second and adjusted her skirt needlessly, "That's all I know…  I'm sorry."

Gohan smiled at her, "Do not worry; you have been a big help.  See, nothing bad has happened."  Gohan said, "Just stay with me and nothing wil…."  Gohan was cut off as the wall directly behind Katina suddenly shot forward straight towards the little girl.

Gohan's eyes widened and he quickly shot forward and blocked the appendage from stabbing the girl.  Katina whirled around and screamed as she Gohan holding the wall at bay.  The little girl panicked and ran off down the hallway.

"NO!  COME BACK!"  Gohan shouted as he ripped the appendage from the wall and threw it away.

Gohan quickly flew down the hallway towards the little girl.  He saw the floor open up beneath the girl and picked up his pace.  Gohan wrapped his arms around the girl's waist and lifted her off the ground a second before she fell into the hole.  The girl screamed again and started to thrash in his arms.

"Calm down Katina.  Do not worry, I will protect you."  Gohan said comfortingly.

Katina stopped screaming and thrashing and laid trembling in his arms.  Gohan stroked her hair to calm her down further as he searched for a quick way to his ship.  He had to get her out of the hallways if he wanted to be able to keep her safe.  Gohan swiftly flew down the hallway with the girl in his arms.  More appendages erupted form the walls to stab at him as he flew.  Gohan expertly dodged among them and kept on flying through the hallways.  At one point the entire hallway collapsed on him trapping him completely.  Gohan quickly erected a shield around himself and the little girl.  Gohan growled, a deep rumbling noise that sounded from within his chest, as he thought of their predicament.  With a massive surge of energy Gohan blasted straight through the walls of the place, no longer bothering to follow the direction of the once existent hallway.  Gohan extended one of his arms and tightened his other around the girl and shot a massive blast forward in the direction of his ship.

"If they are going to collapse the existing hallways on us, I might as well make my own."  Gohan said in explanation to the little girl.

They made good time since they no longer had to follow the twists and turns of the place.  Within a few minutes they blasted out and into the tunnel where his ship laid waiting.  At the sight of the blast and Gohan shooting out the ship pilots knew that something was wrong and quickly started up the engines.  They knew Gohan could make it on before they lifted off.  Gohan headed towards the ship as it slowly rose but before it could get more then a few feet the entire tunnel exploded into action.  Hundreds of appendages zipped out from the walls and wrapped themselves around the ship.  The ship groaned as it tried to rise but it was held firmly.  Gohan started to form energy blasts to destroy the appendages but before he could finish forming even the first the appendages twisted, turned, and tore the ship apart.  A loud explosion erupted from the devastated engines, and a ball of fire engulfed the tunnel.  Gohan quickly raised a shield around him and the little girl as the fire roared past them.  

When the fire abated Gohan stared in disbelief at the shattered remnants of his ship.  Suddenly Gohan noticed that he could see the bottom of tunnel, although he couldn't when he first arrived.  It was then that he noticed it was rising, at an incredible rate.  The bottom of the tunnel didn't look like a floor; it looked like a giant maw complete with huge razor sharp teeth.  The girl's eyes widened as she noticed the floor rising and began to squirm again before two large beams of energy appear out of the wreckage of the ship and slammed into the mouth.  An unearthly scream erupted from the mouth as it slowly melted into pudding.  Gohan stretched his senses towards the location of the two beams and gasped as he recognized two extremely familiar life forces.  Another flash of light appear and suddenly Goten and Trunks were floating before Gohan.

"What are you two doing here?"  Gohan demanded.

Trunks and Goten exchanged nervous glances, "We wanted to come along, and father wouldn't let us have a fort so we had to do something."  Trunks said as he fidgeted nervously.

Gohan glared at the two of them for a moment before he sighed, "Well, there is not much I can do about it now, but when we get back…"  Gohan left the threat hanging and both Trunks and Goten gulped. "Since you two are here, make yourself useful.  It is going to be hard enough to fight a planet without Katina hampering my movements, although it is not really her fault."  Gohan said as he looked down at her, "Make sure that no harm comes to her, I still have to figure out a way to get home."

With that Gohan let his shield down and started to hand Katina over Trunks and Goten.  Trunks stretched his hands forward to take her but before he could an incredibly thin appendage flashed out from the side of the tunnel and wrapped itself around Katina before any of them could blink.  Katina was ripped from Gohan's arms and was quickly dragged back to the wall.    Katina screamed as she felt the appendage wrap around her.  Several other appendages parted from the wall and wrapped themselves around Katina's arms, legs and neck.  Gohan's eyes flashed as he snarled and blasted to save the child but just as he reached her he saw her face change from fear to pain.  Katina let out a blood curdling scream as the appendages pulled in every direction and tore her apart, limb from limb.  Gohan had just reached her when the she was torn apart and her blood splashed all over him.  Gohan would never forget the look in her eyes as she died.  The fear, the pain, and the accusation.  Gohan had promised to protect her, and he had failed.

Gohan screamed in rage as he erupted into the second stage of super saiyan.  He turned around and stared down, down towards the center of the planet.  As he did three shapes separated themselves from the seared mass of flesh and vegetation that Goten and Trunks had burnt.  He soon recognized them as the three people that had met him when he first arrived.

Boreas halted directly in front of him with the other two just slightly behind.  Gohan noticed that all three were attached to the planet by long tendrils.

Gohan stared at Boreas hard and said one word, "Why?"

"Why not?"  Boreas said in return, "She offered power and esteem…  So I made the decision for everyone.  They would have all agreed anyways, once they knew the truth."  He said as he grinned maliciously. "And if they didn't agree…  Well…  They all did in the end, one way… or another."

"You killed her for no reason!"  Gohan snarled.

"No, I didn't kill her, you did, and her blood is on your hands.  Figuratively and literally it appears."  Boreas laughed at his own sick joke and was quickly joined by the other two behind him. "If you had not approached her in the first place, she would never have had to die."  He said in a mild tone and pointed a finger at Gohan, "You are the cause of her death.  But you won't have to worry about that for long because you won't be alive for much longer.  There are ways of disposing even super saiyans."

Gohan snarled in rage and quickly looked up at Goten and Trunks.  The two kids knew what that look meant and quickly powered up to their maximum and went back to back.  Boreas tipped his head and grinned as the tunnel once again exploded into action… and this time the entire planet was in on the attack.

To be continued…

In case you're wondering, all emissaries carry translators… not that Gohan needs it.  He studied foreign languages when he was younger so he is fluent in every single language in his quadrant.

Sorry for posting it so late…  Having motivation problems, but that's just because it's the beginning.  Once I get into it I generally start writing faster and faster J.  Anyways…  Hopefully I'll get the next chapter out within 2 weeks.  After that I start university and I cannot guarantee ANY time for my fan fiction.  This education I'm paying for and I really can't screw it up J.

So what do you think?  Am I suitably evil?  I think I shoulda made an angst warning… oh well J.


	12. Chapter 11: Resolution

Well, I got the map scanned and everything… It turned out to be 1.6 mbs J  it's huge, you can't use paint for it because it's so big, have to use a program that can zoom out/in.

Just in case you people were wondering…  There will be a whole lot of Vil'Tani, Goten, Trunks and Videl soon.  That's because Gohan, Kakkarot, Vegeta, Arthain and a few others will be heading out on the journey soon.  I won't be able to (or I should say I will be able to but it'll be so boring it's sick so I'm not gonna bother) write about the entire journey so except for the major important parts of the journey you won't really see much of the people during it.  (Major parts are like finding the old saiyan home world, first visits/impressions of the other dimension as well as the odd bad/good villain from time to time, finding the body, you know, the important parts.)

****

                                                                               **Chapter 11: Resolutions**

Gohan didn't bother trying to dodge as the appendages from the wall lashed at him.  He merely screamed in rage and released energy outwards in all directions from him.  The majority of the appendages that had attacked Gohan were incinerated in the blast leaving Gohan free to pick his targets for a time.

Trunks and Goten were having a much harder time but because of the differing power strength between them and Gohan.  They still managed to destroy anything that attacked them by working together.  They weaved and dodged in and out of the appendages blasting any near them and each other.  The two worked together so often during their short lives that they knew the others actions almost before they do it and could compensate for it.

Gohan glanced down at the three supposed high heads of Zyian society.  A snarl on the super saiyans face and the look in his eyes was clear indication of what he thought of the three.  The angry glint on the surface of the eyes was nearly overwhelmed by the flames that burned behind them.  With a surge of energy Gohan rocketed towards the three.  Gohan pulled his arms back and prepared to gather energy into them as he drew nearer and nearer to his targets.  Before he could get close a massive sheet of plant matter shot out and blocked Gohan's view of the three.  The super saiyan didn't slow down as he encountered the wall, it wasn't even apparent that he acknowledge it.  He just plowed right through it and continued on towards his target without slowing down in the least.

Just as Gohan neared his quarry they glanced at one another and nodded.  Suddenly they exploded and large quantities of some sort of liquid compound splashed in all directions.  Gohan didn't have time to dodge out of the way due to his high speed and slammed right into some of the liquid.  Gohan looked down at his shirt and arms which were covered in the stuff for a moment before he ignored it.

Gohan rubbed his arms a bit as he flew off to aid Trunks and Goten who began to have increasing trouble in dodging the appendages as more and more appeared possessing greater speed and durability.  Gohan fired many powerful energy blasts at various appendages attacking Goten and Trunks.  Soon after Gohan appeared beside the two, wrapped them in an energy shield and emitted a huge wave of energy outwards from the shield incinerating all of the offending projections.

No sooner had all the appendages been destroyed than more began to appear.  They lashed out from all directions in an attempt to wrap themselves around the saiyans.  Despite the rage burning inside the elder of the three saiyans he couldn't help but wonder what they were attempting to accomplish.  He absently rubbed his arms again as he launched more blasts from his hands.

Goten kept glancing over at his brother in between firing energy blasts in confusion.  "Gohan…  Why is your shirt smoking?" Goten asked as he dodged another offending limb.

Gohan glanced down and his eyes widened in surprise.  The liquid that had splashed over his arms and torso wasn't water or blood, it was acid, very acidic acid.  Gohan tore his shirt off his body and threw it away and blasted it.  His eyes were drawn to his arms that were still upraised and they opened wide again.  The acid was eating through his skin and his aura wasn't burning it off.

"You two stay safe, I have to get this acid off me!"  Gohan yelled over the roar of exploding energy blasts.

With that said Gohan flew forward at an incredible speed towards the wall.  He stretched his hands and arms out in front of him and slammed into the wall.  He didn't bother erecting a barrier he just let his hardened body rip a hole into the wall by itself.  Gohan burrowed through the wall in random directions for awhile before he broke through the wall and appeared inside the silo once more.  Gohan looked down at his arms and smiled grimly, he had lost several layers of skin and was bleeding in a few places but the majority of the acid was gone, what was left wouldn't harm him.

The scene when he returned wasn't heartening.  Trunks had been caught in the jaws of a huge mouth that had appeared out of the wall and Goten was desperately trying to reach him.  Goten's attempts were failing due to the huge numbers of appendages attacking him.  It was all he could do to just protect himself.

Gohan growled and blasted towards Trunks as a huge aura erupted from his body.  Appendages attempted to stop him but they just incinerated as they touched his aura leaving him to concentrate on Trunks.

Goten smiled as he saw Gohan race towards Trunks and promptly forgot about them.  He knew Trunks was going to be alright now.  Goten pushed his arms out and fired a massive energy wave from each hand.  He began to spin around creating a whirlwind and a circular wall of energy around him.

When Gohan reached Trunks he grabbed him around the waist, shoved his hand into the maw, and let off a large energy ball.  The maw promptly exploded into a shower of liquid.  Gohan covered Trunks with his own body and created a shield around the two of them.  The liquid splashed off it and didn't affect the two.  Gohan kept his grip on Trunks as he flew towards Goten.

Goten saw his brother approach him and flew to meet him.  The two met half-way where Gohan grabbed Goten, threw him on his back and blasted straight up.

"We have to get out of here."  Gohan explained to the two little super saiyans, "I want you two to power down and stay that way.  We only have one way of getting home, and that's by me taking us there.  We will need all the oxygen we can get."  Gohan explained to the two.

Goten looked down at his brother in confusion, "But… How are we getting home?  Our ship was destroyed."  Goten asked.

Trunks looked up at Goten, "You idiot, your brother is going to fly us home, that's why there is an oxygen concern, he doesn't carry an oxygen generator on him." Trunks said.

Goten's eyes widened, "But it took us so long to get here…"

"Do not worry little brother.  I can fly faster then the shuttle that took us here, as well as the majority of the ships."  Gohan said to his brother. "It should only take us a couple of hours to get home."

Goten nodded and both him and Trunks powered down.  Goten shielded his eyes from the sudden glare of the sun as they burst through the top of the tunnel.  Gohan erected a massive shield around them as he flew further and further into the sky.  Goten and Trunks glanced down and became extremely nervous as the entire planet turned into a huge mouth.  Two slits appeared above the mouth and both slits were filled with large pools of cyan energy.  The planet stretched towards the three super saiyans with thousands of appendages in a last attempt to capture them.  

Suddenly the blue sky turned to black as they passed through the atmosphere of the planet.  Gohan flew a bit further out, stopped, and slowly turned around.  He glared down once more at the planet before he raised his right arm above his head.

"MASENKO-HA!"  Gohan roared as he brought his arm down and unleashed a massive torrent of energy at the planet.

The planet brought all it's appendages around in front of it in an attempt to stop the massive wave of energy but it was a futile attempt as it ripped through the barrier and the planet itself.  Goten and Trunks watched in horror as the planet shook and trembled under the energy wave before it suddenly detonated.  Gohan quickly turned towards planet Vegeta and dashed through space in an attempt to get home and to escape the huge shockwave that was approaching them from the destroyed planet.

"I am sorry you had to see that Goten, you too Trunks.  You should try to get some sleep, it will be a couple of hours before we get home and there is not much to look at out here." Gohan said softly to the two young super saiyans as they stared back in horror at the approaching shockwave.  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A couple hours later…

The globe that encased Gohan and the two smaller super saiyans became super heated as they entered the atmosphere of planet Vegeta and became engulfed in flame.  The sound of fire crackling and wind whistling past the globe of energy awoke Goten and Trunks.  The two looked around groggily not fully comprehending that they are home.

Gohan rocketed across the landscape as he headed towards the capital.  It only took a few seconds for Gohan to reach his destination even though he was on the other side of the planet.  As he stopped a massive shockwave whipped by him and slammed into the shield around the city and dissipated harmlessly.  The landscape didn't fair as well.  A massive trench was evident to his passing, although he had flown several hundred meters off the ground.  The trees to the southeast of the city lay flattened on either side of the trench heading away from it and the mountain range in the distance sported a new pass.  Gohan wasn't in the mood to care about the landscape; he had something much more important to worry about.  The destruction of a planet was no small thing, especially if you were the one that had to do it.  

Gohan landed before the gates of the city and set both Trunks and Goten down, "Go and play you two and keep what you have seen secret.  If you must keep anything secret, keep that.  No one must know what truly happened there."  Gohan said sternly at the two young super saiyans.

Goten and Trunks nodded, their eyes told Gohan what he wanted to see more then their movements.  The death of the planet and all those people had affected the two in a profound and permanent manner.  The two would no longer be as care free and innocent as they once used to be.

"Brother…  What're you going to do now?"  Goten asked in a subdued voice.

"I have to speak with Vegeta.  I don't care what decision he makes… I have already made mine."

"What decision?"  Trunks asked curiously.

Gohan glanced side-long at Trunks and frowned as he wondered how much Trunks truly knew about the situation.  He realized it didn't matter and shrugged, "You'll have to find out in your own way Trunks." Gohan said as he walked away from the two and entered the city.  The guards at the entrance took one look at his face, the fire in his eyes and the lightning crackling up and down his body and decided to quickly get out of his way.

Many people looked up and wondered what was going on as they saw Gohan race across the city fully powered up.  More then a few became worried about a sudden attack or that some catastrophic event was on the horizon.  Gohan himself couldn't care what they thought; anything they could imagine would pale in comparison with the truth.  Gohan had no doubt what-so-ever as to the accuracy of the information Arthain had revealed, not after what happened on Zyim.

Gohan stopped as he reached the entrance to the palace and waited impatiently for the guards to open the doors.  Gohan swept through the doors before they had even fully opened and walked at a brisk pace through the hallways of the palace.  He knew it like the back of his hand having been through it countless times.  He unerringly walked towards Vegeta.  The ability of being able to pick up life forces made his task easy.  It wasn't much of a surprise to Gohan when he finally stopped in front of the door to Vegeta's study.

"…They weren't treated as a lower clas…"  Arthain stopped as he the door to the study opened up and Gohan walked in.

Vegeta stood up abruptly, "GOHAN!  That's to forward, even for you.  Who gives you permission to just barge into my study!?"  Vegeta growled.

Gohan didn't even look at Vegeta; instead he turned his gaze to Arthain, "I believe you.  I do not care if Vegeta helps you or not.  I will… I will NOT allow it to happen again."  Gohan said in a steady tone.  It was then that Vegeta realized that Gohan was fully powered up.  Most of the anger drained from Vegeta and was in turn replaced by curiosity.

Arthain raised an eyebrow at him, "Why do I get the feeling something happened?"  Arthain said in a mild tone.

Gohan's eyebrows became more furrowed as he growled out, "This is no time for sarcasm.  I just had to destroy an entire planet because of that bitch.  Unlike Vegeta I have seen her, inside my mind.  Her energy was all cyan in color, and that entire planet, the ENTIRE planet had become her play thing.  She's not content with controlling people; she wants to control the planets, the very quadrants themselves."  Gohan snarled out.

Arthain nodded, "Yes…  She had a habit of doing that.  She's only able to take control of planets with an organic core; fortunately the majority of the planets don't possess one of those.  The quadrant however… is a life form, in a way.  It's a part of a bigger life form.  All four quadrants combine to create a singular entity.  Her goal is to control that entity and in essence become an Implementer, a being more powerful then the gods themselves."  Arthain sighed sadly, "Don't bother trying to figure out how I know this.  Just accept the fact that she is coming, and has already started demolishing your empire.  Three planets have fallen because of her.  Oh, one more thing.  You will need a female saiyan." Arthain finished.

Vegeta raised an eyebrow, "And why do we need a female?" He asked.

"If I told you now, it would ruin the surprise."  Arthain said in a light tone as a small smile crossed his face.

Vegeta grumbled something incoherent as sat back down.  Vegeta turned to Gohan, "Alright, you might as well tell me everything that happened.  I have a pretty good idea of what occurred but I want a full account for when the other civilizations start asking questions."  Vegeta said as he leaned back in his chair. "And calm down.  I've decided to go."

Gohan breathed in deep and let the breath out slowly.  Lightning ceased to crackle across his body as his hair shortened a bit.  Gohan pulled out a chair beside Arthain and sat down in it.  After another moment Gohan began to relay his tale. "When I got there everything seemed fine at first.  They were courteous, well-mannered people and gave me a place to stay.  Once settled in I decided to take a look around and figure out what was gong on.  At first I did not notice anything abnormal but as time went by and I saw more and more of their species it hit me. Nearly everyone had cyan eyes and the few that did not were terribly unhappy.  I approached one of the ones that didn't have cyan eyes, a small girl by the name of Katina, and asked her what was wrong.  From what she told me someone or something had begun to take control of the people and that there was a voice whispering inside her head."   Gohan took a deep breath, "They killed her because she helped me… and because I could not protect her.  That monster took control of the planet, the entire planet, and used it to in turn, control the species living on it."  Gohan took another deep breath as he tried to get the next few words out.  "Goten and Trunks snuck aboard the shuttle…"  Gohan wasn't able to go on as Vegeta shot out of his seat.

"WHAT!  THAT!! THAT!  When I get my hands on my son he'll wish he had never gone..."  Vegeta was cut off by Gohan.

"He already does."  Gohan replied.

"What?"  Vegeta asked in confusion.

"He and Goten both saw me destroy the planet and genocide a species…  I do not think they will ever be the same again.  It… seemed to have been a shock to their systems.  I doubt they will ever be as carefree or innocent as they once were.  Personally, I do not think you are able to do anything worse and not have Bulma rip your tail off." Gohan said in a weary voice as he leaned back in his chair. "I am tired; the trip back was rather… exhausting.  I have had a long day and I have said my piece."

Vegeta nodded and dismissed Gohan with a wave of his hand.  As Gohan was about to leave he turned back and said, "Leave Trunks and Goten alone.  Let this incident pass.  They have already suffered enough.  The death of a species and the death of a planet are not something the young should ever have to witness…  It is not something anyone should ever have to witness."  With that said Gohan turned and left the room.

Vegeta looked over at Arthain for a moment, "I think we are finished for tonight.  You know where your room is, just head there.  I think it's time I had a talk with my son."  Vegeta said.  Without further comments Vegeta stood and left the study.  

Arthain just stood up and gave and eerie grin, "Soon… very soon.  I have to be patient, I've waited many a millennia, and I can wait a few more years." Arthain said to the empty room.  He turned and walked through the walls between him and his room as he headed there, startling many people along the way.  

To be continued…

Sorry for such a short chapter but it just seemed to good a place to end it.  Also if I went any further it wouldn't have any relation to the title of the chapter.  Anyways, shorter chapter and I got it out sooner.  Since no one has e-mail me asking to proof read… well I don't think they're going get proofread.  Oh well, I spell pretty well naturally so there are generally only a few mistakes.  Nothing that detracts form the over all goodness of the chapter.

I'm not to sure on what I am going to have next, perhaps everything up until the launch for Arthain's body.  It's not going to be the next day, they still have to prepare.  They've just decided they are going, actually going and knowing WHERE to go will take awhile.  Perhaps a month so that the day they leave is the day Vil'Tani comes to begin studying at the academyJ.  Anyways, University has started and I have NO idea how much time I will have.  It could be several months before I get the next chapter out, or a week.  That's why this one is going out now, before I totally lose all my time and am not able to finish it should I try to make it longer.  Anyways, hope you like it, cause I do, and that's all that matters J.


	13. Chapter 12: The Beginning of a Journey

Oh, you may see a time mistake in my story where Vil'Tani said she'd arrive on Vegeta to study in a few months while less then half a month later Vegeta says she'll be there within a month…  Well just so the nit pickers don't get on my case Cerians don't have 30 day months like saiyans, they have 15.    Cerians have 30 months in a year, 15 days per month.  Saiyans have a calendar similar to ours, 12 months but each month has exactly 30 days, none of this 30/31/29 bullshit.  Anyways if you go by that the time frame will be the same.

For those that haven't figured out what the third wish is… I just call you stupid.  It was blunt in the 11th chapter and will continue to be blunt for the rest of the story.

Anyways about half way through this chapter I'm going to stop referring to Gohan and company as super saiyans and refer to them as just saiyans because that's all they really are.  Everyone who has brown hair will be referred to as a devolved saiyan, because in actuality that is what they are.  Arthain said that there are 4 saiyans types.  Saiyans (or as everyone else knows it level 1 super saiyan), evolved saiyans (level 2 and above), hybrid saiyans (self-explanatory) and mutant saiyans (Brolly type.  The ones that don't obey the natural evolutionary ladder and go on their own separate way, each one is unique although it's hard to tell because there is one and probably only ever be 1 mutant saiyan in my story unless something… unexpected happens).

This chapter is going to be quite choppy as in it jumps all over the place…  Sorry but it needs to be done, PLUS ITS MY STORY SO MY RULES HAH!

For some reason Fanfiction doesn't like me centering my title so for now on it's going to be flush against the left side.  In the past I've tried to make it centered by using spaces but realized that it's futile because everyone uses different resolutions so while for some it's centered, for others it's not.  I'm just going to leave it left aligned from now on.

**Chapter 12:  The Beginning of a Journey**

Two young saiyans hovered far above the forest just south of the capital as they talked softly to one another, their golden hair waving gently in the breeze.  There wasn't a soul in any direction for miles and the only sound that permeated the air aside from the whistling of the wind were the chirping of birds in the forest below.

"What happens now Trunks?"  Goten asked in a quiet voice.

Trunks looked at Goten with worry in his eyes, "I don't know.  I…  I only wanted to pull a prank on Gohan while we were there…  I didn't expect anything like this."

Goten sighed and bowed his head, "I… I don't understand… Why did Gohan destroy the planet?  Couldn't he of just flown away?" Goten asked.

Trunks shrugged his shoulders.  He had no answer for his best friend; he had been asking himself the same question ever since the flight home.

"What am I suppose to say to mom?  Gohan just… he…  Why?" Gohan asked no one in particular.  He was having difficulty accepting what Gohan had done.

Trunks floated over to Goten and placed a hand on his shoulder, "Don't worry… I'm sure that there was a reason behind it."  Trunks said.

Goten was about to speak up again when a shockwave sounded.  They turned and watched as Gohan flew towards his home.  Goten continued to watch his brother until he stopped in the far distance, floated down and disappeared into the tree line.  Trunks had been watching his friend the entire time and noticed a slight crease by the eyes.  He shook his head, nothing he said or did could help his friend.

The two just hovered there for awhile until a second sonic boom was sounded.  The two turned and had just enough time to recognize Vegeta before he arrived before the two of them.

Vegeta looked over at Goten for a second before he frowned, "Trunks…  I need to speak with you.  Goten, go home and get rest.  You will need it."  Vegeta said before he grabbed his son by his armour and dragged him back to the capital.

Goten sighed heavily as he watched his friend get dragged away.  He couldn't help but feel that it had some significant meaning.  Goten turned and headed home, exhaustion beat down upon him along the way as he wondered if life would ever be the same again.

The image of the planet exploding replayed over and over in the young saiyans mind on his trip home.  Nothing he did could dislodge it from its spot.  Goten was totally oblivious to his surroundings as flew under the floating garden and walked into his home.

Chichi was standing at the door to the kitchen as she explained to Kakkarot that there would be no food until Goten came for supper.  Needless to say Kakkarot became elated when Goten walked through the door.

"GOTEN!  Thank god you arrived when you did.  I'm starving, now we can eat."  Kakkarot said cheerfully, completely missing the mood that surrounded Goten.  Chichi on the other hand noticed it immediately.

Kakkarot did a back flip as a ki pan slammed into his face, "Shut up Kakkarot, something's wrong with Goten."  Chichi told Kakkarot as she walked over to her youngest son, "What's wrong dear?  You're not like yourself tonight." Chichi said in a soft voice.

Goten looked up at his mother, a stricken expression on his face, "Mom… Is… Is Gohan evil?"  Goten asked in a whisper.

Chichi's eye's widened in surprise at the question.  Goten adored and idolized is older brother and for him to ask something like this was out of the norm.  "Why ever would you think that?"  Chichi asked in trepidation as Kakkarot stood up.

Goten lowered his eyes and shook his head, "Never mind… forget I said anything."  Goten replied.

Chichi frowned, "No, I won't.  Tell me what you meant by that question!"  Chichi demanded, "Or no supper for you tonight."

Goten gave a sad smile, "I'm not hungry anyways mom…"  Goten said as he walked away and up to his room.

Chichi stood there with her eyes bulging, too surprised to yell at her son to come back.  Kakkarot wasn't in a much better condition; he didn't think anything was wrong until Goten said he wasn't hungry.  Now he was extremely worried, food was the most precious thing to him and for someone to turn it down was not well in his mind.

Chichi sighed and looked over at Kakkarot, "I guess you can eat now.  I'm going to go and talk to Gohan, something is very wrong here and I won't be able to eat in peace until I know what's going on."  Chichi said as she walked out the front door and flew off towards Gohan's house.

Kakkarot debated on whether to follow his mate or not.  In the end he decided she would be fine on her own and wouldn't need his help.  A breeze brought once again the smell of food from the kitchen and all other thoughts were driven from the elder super saiyans mind.

-----------------------

Meanwhile back at the palace…

Vegeta leaned back in his seat as he contemplated how to reveal the following information to his son.  The crown prince, Trunks, for all appearances seemed calm and collected but he was fidgeting nervously on the inside.  He had no idea why his father had summoned him here and coupled with the earlier day's events he wasn't sure he would be able to cope with any more surprises.

Vegeta sighed and decided to start at the beginning, "Alright Trunks, I want you to listen carefully.  Gohan told me what he did today and why and I think you should know as well.  You should also know why I will be leaving within a month time."  Vegeta said, "I would let you in on a little secret that must not be revealed.  Very few people know this, in fact, only Arthain, Gohan and I know of it."  Vegeta took in a deep breath, "We aren't super saiyans.  There are no such beings as super saiyans.  The legend was nothing."  Trunks eyes opened wide and was about to protest but Vegeta cut him off with a swipe of his arm, "Don't say it Trunks, I already know the question.  I was talking with Arthain and… he is supposedly 'the' legendary super saiyan… but he's not.  In the past… every saiyan had yellow hair, teal eyes and super strength and speed.  A select few went beyond that but they were simply called evolved saiyans, because that is all they were.  They had simply evolved beyond that of everyone else.  Do you know what this means?"  Vegeta asked.

Trunks thought for a moment before answer, his mind was in turmoil already and this additional information wasn't helping matters, "I… I think so.  Are you saying that… everyone without yellow hair is not saiyan?"  Trunks asked.

Vegeta shook his head slowly, "You are only partially correct.  They aren't saiyans, but they are related to saiyans.  They are… the saiyan ancestors, or I should say, devolved saiyans and this brings me to the point of this conversation."  Vegeta said.

Trunks rubbed his head, "Why do I get the feeling I'm not going to like this?"  Trunks muttered to himself.

"It doesn't matter whether or not you are going to like it, you are going to listen and understand."  Vegeta said, startling Trunks. "The reason the saiyans are devolved is that a being that goes by the name of Aerie did this to our race.  Arthain, along with our strongest warriors, attacked Aerie and imprisoned her beyond the fabric of reality but… before she was totally imprisoned she did a backlash.  It wasn't direct at a single person, but at every saiyan.  Her strike devolved our entire race into what we are now, a bunch of weaklings.  We are only just now beginning to return to our natural state, and that is only with outside help.  Her strike also destroyed our old home world…"

"WHAT!  But I thought we've always lived on this planet!"  Trunks exclaimed in surprise.

"Stop interrupting me!" Vegeta yelled and Trunks immediately quieted down, "Now as I was going to say, the backlash also devastated our old home world so the saiyans left to find a different place to live.  They found this planet, and named it after the only remaining hero of the war, Vegeta. The hero's of the war are written down in the history book that the lore masters of old wrote.  It said their names, from least important to most, were Vegeta, Warpath, Raven, Arganon and their leader, Arthain.  Vegeta was elected because all other hero's were killed or imprisoned like the original royal family.  Usually it's been tradition to pass the name Vegeta down on to the royal heir but there have been exceptions in the past and no doubt there will be exceptions in the future."  Vegeta stopped for a moment as he recollected his thoughts.  Trunks' eyes were opened wide; he never knew history could be so interesting yet disturbing.  "Now this being, this creature, Aerie, is breaking free from her prison even as we speak."  Trunks' jaw dropped at this and disbelief filled his eyes, "Don't give me that look, it's the truth.  I did not want to believe it, and didn't fully believe it until I received the report from Gohan."  Trunks became very attentive at this, this was what he wanted, a possible reason behind Gohan's actions. "Aerie is a being of pure energy, her energy glows cyan and is quite distinct."  Trunks' mind began to work very rapidly at this point as pieces started to fall into place, "Gohan went to that planet to figure out what their motives were.  They refused to help us when Aerie first attacked us…"

"Aerie attacked us?  I thought Brolly was the one that attacked us?"  Trunks asked in confusion.

"Yes and no."  Vegeta said as he decided to ignore the interruption. "It was his body used to attack us, but not his mind.  He was under her control.  Aerie is able to control those with weak mental abilities.  That is one new program I am putting into the academy.  I never thought it much use before but it is going to be needed now.  Being saiyan rather then a devolved saiyan builds up a large natural resistance to the mental domination, which is why a pendant was required to control Brolly."  Vegeta stopped as his voice cracked and got up.  He walked behind his chair and over to a small table.  He grabbed the pitcher of water and poured himself two cups of water.  Vegeta walked back to his chair, sat down, and downed one of the glasses before setting the other on the table in front of him. "Anyways when Gohan got there…"

"He found the planet under her control?"  Trunks finished the sentence for his father.

Vegeta smiled, "Finally you are using your brain.  Yes, Aerie had not taken control of just the people, but the entire planet as well.  That is why Gohan destroyed it.  It had been dominated by Aerie and we could not allow it to remain under her control.  She must not have any footholds here when she returns, if she does we'll never beat her."  Vegeta finished.

"But…  Couldn't she take control of planet Vegeta?"  Trunks asked and fear filled his eyes as he realized the implications of what he had just said.

Vegeta shook his head, "No, she can't.  She can only take control of planets with an organic core.  Fortunately there are very few planets like that.  The journey I'm going on within a month, it's to get Arthain's body back.  He will be a great asset to us, and I'm going to make sure he is indebted so that he will help us in future conflicts.  Gohan is all good and fine but if 'the' legendary saiyan hero comes back.  Can you imagine how easy it would be to take over the other quadrants?"  Vegeta asked and smiled as Trunks nodded. "I'm going to leave Bulma and Landyn in charge until I come back, to serve as regent.  I'm not sure how long I will be gone, but I know it will be for a few years at the very least with the way that Arthain is going on." Trunks started to protest but Vegeta raised his hand to quiet him down, "I don't care what you have to say, that is the way it is going to be.  You may be intelligent but you are not ready to rule alone yet.  You will learn from Bulma and Landyn, Bulma will look out for my best interests, as well as her own, and Landyn will look out for the best interest of the people.  Together they will be able to teach you all that you need to know."  Vegeta sighed and combed his hair with his fingers, "I want you to keep everything said here quiet, don't even tell Goten.  He talks too much and may let it slip.  I'm only telling you because someone who is remaining here must know the truth.  I want you to prepare for Aerie quietly; don't do anything that may let the public know of what's really happening.  I don't want all the saiyans riled out to go to battle years before it actually happens."  Vegeta said.

Trunks rubbed his head again, it was pounding really hard.  It was almost too much to take in, "Just how strong is Aerie supposed to be if she could take on an entire race of sup… err… saiyans?"  Trunks asked, not really wanting to know the answer.

Vegeta grinned, "She's supposedly has an infinite amount of power."  Vegeta answered.

Trunks leaned back and sighed as the pounding in his head got worse, "How am I suppose to prepare against something like that?"  Trunks asked.

"Very carefully."  Vegeta replied cryptically, "Now, we're finished here.  I have other matters of state to attend that I have neglected because of this incident.  Get some sleep; you look like you need it."

Trunks sighed as he left the room, he had a terrible headache and he wasn't sure sleep was going to help all that much.

----------------------

Meanwhile at Videl's house.…

A loud crash was heard as the front door to Videl's home split asunder as Chichi stormed in.  She was about to give Gohan a major tongue lashing but was stopped as the scene unfolded.  Videl sat at one end of the couch with Gohan's head cradled against her breasts.  She looked up at her mother-in-law with eyes filled with sorrow.  She had felt everything Gohan had went through and was still going through.  Gohan rotated his head a little so he could see his mother.  His eyes were bloodshot and tears rolled down his cheeks unchecked.

"Mother… Tell Goten…  That I am sorry… I'm so… sorry.  I only did what I had to do…  I hope he understands one day…  I never wished for him to witness that…  No one should ever have to."  Gohan said trailing off into a whisper as he finished and burrowed his head back into Videl.

Chichi let go of the twin ki pans she had been brandishing and raised an eyebrow.  Videl mouthed 'I'll tell you later' to Chichi and the elder woman nodded.  Chichi left the house much quieter the she had entered, and made a promise to herself to get the door repaired sometime in the future.

****************

The following four weeks passed by in a blur for the few that knew what was truly happening.  Almost all day and night Vegeta worked tirelessly on the preparations for the journey.  The most sophisticated star ship ever was constructed for the journey.  Vegeta refused to have anything less then the best for him.  The Ziorans provided the base technology required to build the ship while the saiyans provided the man power.  Many other races pitched in their help providing the latest in just about every type of technological construction, from the state of the art warp-stream engines to an automatic instant coffee maker.  The ship that was constructed was just short of a mile long and a quarter mile wide and high.  Massive energy weapons were mounted on either side of the star ship to server as the main cannons while thousands of smaller anti-missile batteries, missile racks, gatling lasers and laser pods riddled the rest of the ship.  The deck of the ship was located about three fifths of the way to the back of the ship and was situated between many anti-missile batteries.  A supped up force shield and cloaking device had been installed upon the ship as well as anti-gravity devices so it could fly in space as well as in the atmosphere of planets and gas giants.  The star ship was also equipped with a weapon designed for only one purpose, the destruction of celestial bodies.  A large ion cannon was situated at the front of the ship.  The ion cannon wasn't meant to envelop objects in a sheet of energy, but rather to penetrate the object until it hit the core where it would then release it's energy.  Arthain created much of the software for the sensors of the ship and oversaw the construction of the hardware.  By now everyone had gotten used to the spectre and many couldn't wait for him to come back to them in the flesh.  The old home world was located in a fold in space and required spatial distortion detector to find the entrance.  No one knew how to create one aside from Arthain, hence the reason he headed the job.

The ship wasn't the only thing to be constructed during this period of time.  The Ziorans had begun linking all the home worlds together using warp gates.  This helped to decrease the building time of the huge star ship among other projects.  The amount of trade and traffic that occurred between worlds picked up considerably as both Commercial and Military warp gates was constructed.  The guards that were situated at the warp gates on the various worlds were warned to look for people with cyan eyes and to immediately detain them.  They were never told why, it wasn't in the job description to ask, merely act.  Alicia took command of the guards at the warp gates and was kept busy organizing and training them.

Goten continued to be down, nothing could reach him.  Videl revealed to Chichi what had happened and Chichi told Kakkarot and Goten.  Kakkarot didn't really worry all that much and figured that Gohan and Goten would be fine.  Goten never got better.  He ate only when necessary and never did anything that required thought or energy.  He just walked around listlessly and responded and short one syllable words.  It was obvious there was a barrier but the only person on the planet that could have gotten through was the one that caused it in the first place.  Trunks was able to deal with what happened much better then Goten but he hadn't been as naïve or innocent as Goten when the incident happened.  Trunks had already started his education to become a ruler.  Vegeta met with him for an hour a day, intent on relaying as much teaching as possible before he left.  He didn't want to come back to a kingdom that was in ruins.

By the end of the four weeks all of the damage done by Brolly had been erased and the few that remembered him were forced to keep quiet about it although some did not like it.  The few that were totally outraged disappeared suddenly and were never seen again.

The defences of every major planet in the quadrant underwent massive upgrades as Vegeta relayed to the leaders the current situation.  They were the only people that were able to handle the information without causing a panic although many wondered why the defences were being upgraded when there wasn't any trouble in sight.

News of what happened on Zyim was put under a veil and a story was adopted saying a large 'comet' had slammed into the planet and destroyed it.  The 'comet' was supposedly carrying a special kind of frozen liquid that hid it from all forms of detection and that all of this 'liquid' was currently under the study on planet Vegeta with Bulma heading the research project and no one was allowed near it.  

****************

A personal fighter touched down on the landing pad at the palace.  The shuttle was pure black with a silver window for the cockpit.  Twin engines were located on both sides near the middle and one double laser cannon was mounted on the bottom. Single laser cannons could be seen at the tips of the wings that extended out the back of the ship going at a 45 degree angle from the rear to either side.

There were a few people waiting as the fighter landed.  Vegeta stood at the forefront with Gohan standing just slightly behind him.  Trunks stood behind them a ways and Landyn, along with a few new royal guards, stood at attention around the perimeter of the landing pad.  The glass of the cockpit opened up and Vil'Tani stood up in it.  She leapt gracefully from the ship to land a few feet in front of Vegeta.

Vil'Tani bowed, "Vegeta, I've arrived to study here at your academy.  I thank you for letting me."  Vil'Tani said formally.

Vegeta nodded, "Glad to have you here, having you graduate from our academy will only improve its… standing."  Vegeta said, "I've thought you should know, Goten has been enlisted in the same academy… and the same courses."  Vegeta said with a little smile on his face.

Vil'Tani's face lit up and she quickly looked around before she frowned, "Where is he anyways?"  She asked curiously and a little upset at not finding him there to greet her, "I… I'm looking forward to talking to him again."

Vegeta frowned, Gohan bowed his head and Trunks looked as if he wished he was someplace else.  Vil'Tani quickly caught on to the mood and became worried, "What's wrong?  Has something happened to him?"  She asked in a worried voice. _I hope it's nothing to serious. She thought to herself but in her heart she knew it was different._

Gohan finally looked up at her with sadness in his eyes, "He… saw something he was not quite prepared to accept.  It… has drastically affected him.  He does not move from his home often and when he does he refuses to leave the property.  He only does what is required to stay alive… He is dead on the inside."  Gohan said and shook his head a little, "And it is my fault for him seeing it."

Vegeta spun on Gohan and snarled, "Shut up Gohan!  I hate seeing you like this.  It was either have Goten see what happened to Zyim or leave him to perish on the planet.  You choose the lesser of the two evils.  At least this way he has a chance at life!"  Vegeta shouted at Gohan.

Vil'Tani stepped between the two to prevent any further fighting, "Why don't you two tell me what happened… Maybe… Maybe I can help him."  Vil'Tani said boldly before realizing who she was speaking to and finished with, "If that is alright with you your Majesty."

Vegeta looked at Vil'Tani and grumbled, "Alright, follow me.  Gohan, come along, you can fill in what I forget.  Perhaps you can help Goten; no one else has been able to."  Vegeta replied and headed inside.  Gohan, Trunks and Vil'Tani fell in behind him while the royal guard made sure the workers at the hangar stored the fighter properly.

**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**

An hour later…

Vil'Tani blasted through the air in the direction of Kakkarot's and Chichi's house.  Thoughts of Goten flashed through her head as she flew as fast as possible.  For some reason she couldn't focus on anything aside from helping Goten.  In due time, although it seemed an eternity to her, she arrived at the house; it was unmistakable with the garden floating above it.  As the shadow of the garden covered her she slowed down and landed at a run before the door of the house.  When she got there she tore the door open and looked around franticly for Goten.  

Goten was just sitting numbly in one of the larger chairs in the lounge just staring off into space.  It was apparent that he hadn't noticed her enter the house, despite the entire racket.  Chichi came storming out of the under ground gravity chamber getting ready to yell at whoever barged into her home until she saw Vil'Tani looking at her son.  She bit back her words and slowly backed down the stairwell enough so that she could hear what was going on but couldn't be seen.  She knew that Vil'Tani was her last hope of getting Goten to return to even a semblance of his former self and didn't want to disturb them, but that wasn't going to stop her from eavesdropping, or 'making sure Goten was alright' in her mind.

Vil'Tani bit her lip as she slowly approached Goten.  It wasn't until she was nearly in front of him that he noticed her presence and when he did he jerked back in surprise.  The two stared at each other for minutes on end, making Chichi very anxious, before either bothered to speak.

"Goten?  What's wrong?"  Vil'Tani gently said as she walked the last couple of steps to the chair.  She knew what was wrong but she was trying to get Goten to open up to her.

Goten sighed and bowed his head, a few stray yellow strands dangled down in front of his eyes, "Nothing is wrong…  I'm just not feeling well."  Goten said.

Vil'Tani frowned and stamped her little foot, "Something is wrong, Goh…"

"DON'T say that name!"  Goten interrupted with a shout.

Vil'Tani got right into Goten's face, "Gohan told me everything that happened, everything.  You do not understand what your brother had to go through."  Vil'Tani said, deliberately talking over Goten's protests and attempts to make her stop talking.

As she stopped talking she sat down beside Goten on the chair.  The chair was large, but not that large and the two were squished together comfortably.  Goten glared at Vil'Tani but she ignored the look and began speaking once more.

"Gohan didn't have any choice in what he did.  If he had just flown away like you thought was the best choice the planet would have just chased him back to Vegeta where it would either have to be destroyed or it would devour this planet."  Vil'Tani said and noticed Goten's glare lessen as she spoke, "Do you really want to lose your home?  Gohan didn't enjoy what he did.  You weren't the one doing the killing, you were merely a spectator, and how do you think Gohan feels?  He had to kill millions of people, genocide an entire species, and destroy a planet.  You think he just did that and wasn't affected by it?"  Vil'Tani asked and Goten's face began to take on a stricken look, "He was affected by it, probably worse then you.  Apparently he was a wreck for a week afterwards, but you never noticed it because you were too focused on yourself!"  Vil'Tani put a hand on Goten's shoulder and noticed that the wall that he had put up was about to shatter, "Do you understand d… Goten?"  Vil'Tani enquired and was about to go on but was stopped because Goten suddenly buried his face into Vil'Tani's chest and started to cry.

Vil'Tani smiled down at Goten with adoration in her eyes as she brought her arms up and around him.  Chichi, from her position on the stairs, whipped some tears from her eyes as she walked quietly back to the gravity chamber.  There was only so far one should peep into others personal affairs.  She had no doubt that her son would be fine.

In the lounge Goten cried a river into Vil'Tani's shirt as she held onto him gently, yet firmly.  She stroked his back and whispered comforting words into his ears.  She had broken the wall down, now she had to repair what it was hiding.  _Don't worry Goten; I'll be here for you… always._

Vil'Tani wasn't sure but she thought she heard something whisper in the back of her mind, _Thank you_…

**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**

Several days later…

The ship was ready, the preparations complete, now all it required, were the people that were going.  Gohan stood before it, gazing at it from the side of the hangar.  He was anxious to get going, and saddened because he would have to leave his mate behind.  Videl refused to be parted from her daughter and the journey they were going on was no place for children.  That self-same saiyan woman and child stood beside him as they too gazed at the ship.

"You be careful alright Gohan."  Videl asked making it sound more like a statement then a question.

Gohan turned his gaze from the ship and levelled it upon his family.  He walked over to Videl and hugged both her and their daughter.  Pan giggled from her spot, which was between Gohan and Videl, as she was hugged.  When Gohan pulled away he found Pan still attached tightly to the front of his armour smiling him.  Gohan smiled back down and rubbed her head.  Pan scrambled up her father and sat on his head and began to play with his hair.  Gohan gave Videl a look of mock surprise and horror as giggles ensued from the mass of spiky hair.  Videl laughed and gave Gohan a sympathetic look.

The sound of footsteps made the two turn around and watch the approaching couple.  Gohan couldn't help but let a grin cross his face as Goten and Vil'Tani entered the hanger side by side, not touching, but very close.  Goten flushed a little in embarrassment as he saw Gohan look at him.  Vil'Tani sported him with a little smile which he missed.  Goten was back to normal now and felt bad for treating Gohan the way he did.  He ran around and played pranks on everyone with Trunks.  It seemed as if he was trying to catch up for lost time.  No one was truly safe from him, and what made it worse was that Vil'Tani joined in most of the time.  In only a few days time a prank store had opened up in the capital city thanks to Goten and Trunks.  Now no one was truly safe because other children had begun to look up to Goten and Trunks and pulled their own pranks in hopes of become a super saiyan.  Although Goten seemed like he was back to normal a shadow still hung about him from time to time.  He would never be the same as he was.

"I hear you are leaving today Foreign Minister, is that true?"  Vil'Tani asked politely.

Gohan rubbed his hair and Pan grabbed his fingers and began tugging on them.  More giggles ensued form on top the unruly mass of hair.  Vil'Tani couldn't help but crack a smile at that as Goten and Videl laughed at Gohan as he rolled his eyes.  His hair had become a trap for anything that strayed in there.

"You don't have to be so formal Vil'Tani; we're almost like family now.  And yes, I am leaving today."  Gohan answered as he grinned at Goten.

Vil'Tani blushed a little as she looked at Goten, "As you wish Forei…  Ahh… Gohan."

Goten looked back and forth between the two of them and scratched his head in confusion, "What do you mean she's almost like family?  Am I missing something?"  Goten asked in a clueless tone.

Videl, Gohan laughed uproariously at the comment.  Vil'Tani blushed even more but still broke out into a fit of laughter, although a bit more controlled then Gohan and Videl who were nearly floored.  Goten stood scratching his head looking more and more confused by the second and that was how everyone else came across them.

Vegeta, Karie, Brolly and Trunks, followed by Arthain, walked up to them five of them, but from a different direction then Goten and Vil'Tani.  Vegeta carried an oval plate and a key in his hands.  The newcomers waited for them to quiet down but when it became apparent that they weren't going to settle down anytime that day he cleared his voice roughly.  Gohan and Videl turned around and settled down although chuckles still escape through their closed mouths from time to time.  Vil'Tani blushed even more, but this time in embarrassment and quickly did a short bow for Vegeta.  Goten rushed forward, grabbed Trunks, and took him away from the group.  The two had a hushed conversation while the adults spoke.  Vil'Tani walked over to join them soon after.

Vegeta walked up to Gohan and glanced over his shoulder at the three children, "When those three get together like that I start to worry.  I think we need to get onto the ship as soon as possible, as well as make sure they don't sneak onboard with us.  We don't want a repeat of…" Vegeta falls silent and decided to change the subject.  He didn't want to be living onboard a ship with an unruly Gohan, "Everything is prepared, they're just waiting for you, me and Karie to board the ship."  Vegeta said.

Gohan nodded and began walking along the balcony overlooking the hanger as they headed towards the entrance to the star ship, "Have you decided a name for the ship?"  Gohan asked curiously.

Vegeta nodded affirmatively, "Yes, I have.  It shall be called…"  Vegeta tries to pause for dramatic effect.

"Just spit it out, we want to be gone before Goten, Vil'Tani and Trunks finish developing their idea."  Gohan said.

Vegeta grumbled but hurried along, he too didn't want to stay around much longer, "Fine, its name is Arganon, in remembrance of the great hero who fought in the ancient war."  Vegeta said.  Gohan nodded his head, he knew the story.  He had gone and read the history book while Vegeta wasn't around.  He had been curious about the history and the little tidbit he had given him wasn't enough.

The group soon reached the extended rap that allowed them access to the ship.  It was here that they stopped for the last time before boarding the star ship.  There were many people going on and off as they prepared the last minute details so that the king's lift off went as smoothly as possible.  

Karie turned and hugged Brolly, "Take care you big lug, and don't bash anyone to hard.  You're going to be the strongest person here with Gohan gone."  Karie said and Vegeta became a little nervous although he hid it well.  He didn't full trust Brolly as of yet.  The battle he fought was still too fresh in his mind.  He hopped Brolly wouldn't try anything while they were gone, if he did there wouldn't be much anyone could do.  The only one staying behind that came close to his strength was Kakkarot and he was to blind to notice if Brolly decided to take the kingdom and dispose of Trunks.

Nothing else was required to be said.  All goodbyes had already taken place, in private.  Vegeta walked up the extended walkway with Gohan trailing close behind followed by Karie.  Arthain just walked on the air beside Vegeta, amusing himself like usual.  Once the four had entered the ship an alarm sounded telling everyone to clear the hangar.  Within seconds it was clear and a minute later the doors opened.

Everyone in the vicinity of the capital city stopped what they were doing and looked up as the star ship lifted from its holding bay and began to take off.  The anti-gravity drives enabled the ship to lift off horizontally instead of vertically like every other star ship and it made an imposing sight to behold.  As the ship rose above the shield of the city the air around the it began to shimmer and all of a sudden it disappeared.  A massive shockwave rippled outwards from where the ship had been which would have devastated the city had the shields around it not been reinforced.  Many people watched it take off, but few realized the true significance behind its departure.

To be continued…

There we go, another chapter done, and a lot sooner then I had anticipated.  Anyways, in response to Luna Meow… Yes I will have Arthain reveal that information, all in good time, just wait.  Patience is a virtue :). Anyways, I'm going to say screw schedules. I have no idea when the next one will be out.  I say anywhere between tomorrow and April 2005.  That way I can go as slow or fast as I want and no one can say I lied.  More then likely it won't take till April 2005, I'm kinda hoping to have the story done by then, anyways.  Enjoy the chapter, I loved it.  I got plans for Vil'Tani and Goten :).      


	14. Chapter 13: The First Day at the Academy

I'm glad that not all of you are numbskulls.  Dany hit it on the nail when he said that the third wish was to make anyone and everyone from that point on who went from devolved to normal should stay as normal and is impossible for them, or any of their descendents from that point on, to become devolved.  Although it's a bit more then just that though, you'll see.  In chapter 9 the hint was Kakkarot's golden hair… why would he be in the normal form when there was no reason to?  Vegeta was the one obsessed with the idea of staying 'evolved', not Kakkarot.  In chapter 10 the fact that Goten and Trunks, along with Kakkarot were both in their normal form and not devolved form should have given it away.  That's 3 normal saiyans even though there was no reason.  Also, nowhere anywhere in that chapter, the one before or any after did it mention anyone switching between devolved and normal saiyan modes.  Chapter 11 was just plain obvious.  Goten and Trunks, when they powered up to max and to their lowest didn't leave devolve or go normal, this suggest that… or I should say, screams that they couldn't.  Anyways now that you all know it thanks to Dany there's no reason for me to drop hints and stuff I can just write without trying to 'give' it away.  I know I said I wouldn't give it away but now that its known… I really don't think it matters.

Oh just a word of warning about this chapter.  I've made the last few chapters really serious so I think it's about time I put in a little humour.  I'll try to keep as much cheese as I can out of it.

Also I think after this story I may do an original one, one that isn't bound by any rules or regulations.  My mind can go completely wild at that point :).

I'm not going to go into detail of any of the classes unless there is something important in it that needs to be said.  I don't think people want pages and pages on military strategies and the like.  If you DO just say and I'll introduce a few but I'm not trying to make this an educational story :).  I want EVERYONE who reads this to put their opinion in whether or not to add actual content to the courses because if the majority of you don't then I won't but if the majority of you do… then I will.  I'd rather not drive anyone off that I didn't have to.

Oh, a tip for anyone reading my story…  Never ever ever put anything in the middle of the story that doesn't belong there, as in Authors Notes and Advertising.  All those should be done at the beginning or the end.  As soon as you put 1 Authors/Advertising note into the middle of the chapter you break the flow and make the story shit.

One last thing, since no one has yet responded an interest in proofreading yet another chapter goes up without it.  Ahh well, like I said before, there won't be any spelling mistakes and the grammar mistakes should be relatively few.

**Chapter 13: The First Day at the Academy**

Trunks, Goten and Vil'Tani stood side by side as they watched the star ship leave the planet.  They were one of the few that were able to track its movements before it was lost from sight.  The three stood there long after it had left, neither talking nor moving.  For Trunks it would be a long time before he ever saw his father again, and for Goten it would be a long time before he ever saw his Brother.  Vil'Tani hadn't lost anything but the mood surrounding the other two permeated into her and made her feel a sense of loss along as well.

They stayed like that for several minutes after the ship had left and only finally came out of their stupor when Brolly approached them.  The massive mutant saiyan smiled as the three of them turned to look at him.  He was wearing white, baggy trousers with a piece of red cloth tied around his waste.  A black, sleeveless top covered his torso and a long V down the center of it showed the inner parts of his pecks and his neck.  A blue insignia was engraved onto the right shoulder of the shirt.

Brolly smiled as he rubbed his hand through his greenish-yellow hair, "Don't worry you guys, they'll be back eventually."  Brolly said reassuringly.

Vil'Tani frowned at Brolly for a moment before she tugged on Goten, who was about to speak, "Come on Goten, let's get ready.  We don't have much time before we have to go to the academy.  We need to get the supplies."  She said in an excited tone.  

Goten promptly forgot Brolly as the plan popped back into his mind.  Brolly was about to speak again but was completely ignored.  Trunks just grinned and soon the three of them were flying through the sky.  Brolly scratched his head in confusion wondering what he did to offend Vil'Tani.  He shrugged after a moment.  It didn't matter; she wasn't a very important figure in his life, and he could always tell her later.  

"I wonder what there is to eat at the palace."  Brolly said as his mind turned towards food.

------------------------

Meanwhile...

Goten, Vil'Tani and Trunks flew in silence as they headed towards the prank store.  Vil'Tani was slightly behind because she didn't know where to go.  Huge grins were plastered across their faces, grins that scared all who saw them, and that grew as the store came into view.  This store wasn't like many other stores.  The majority of the stores on any planet were small buildings that held few items with the exception of grocery stores that were massive sprawling complex.  This 'store' was bigger then the grocery stores.  A prank store had never been heard of before Trunks and Goten had thought one up, and it had been a major hit.  It had skipped the small business stage entirely as the demands for prank materials sky rocketed and became a major corporation, although with only one building.  With the addition of warp gates on each major planet, the demand went up even higher.  Many of the younger generation idolized Goten and Trunks and, to the dismay of the older people, tried to emulate them as much as possible, including the pranks.  The prank 'store' was a massive sprawling complex that covered several square kilometres with several large office towers spiralling above it and those office towers where all the paper work was done.

Few truly knew who ran it, for if they had had known the horror of the situation would have grown.  Goten and Trunks together controlled nearly 96% of the shares in the company and were the big 'head honchos'.  Since Vegeta had refused to give them a new fort, they had decided to branch out into a different direction.  They wanted to make Vegeta regret that decision, but before they could do that they had to make their company one of the pillars of the economy, so that removal of it would send the economy tumbling, and they were well on their way to doing it.  The company, although being as big as it was, couldn't keep up with the demands, and the demands were going to keep increasing forever since each new generation would want to follow in the previous' footsteps.  This, combined with the previous generations of pranksters that still did pranks, would keep the company in business for a long time, maybe indefinitely.  Many other companies tried to follow suit but they all failed due to the fact that Goten and Trunks had their own personal squad of elite pranksters that made sure that they were knocked out of business before they could even get started.

As the three approached the 'store' the shield that surrounded it went down and an opening appeared in the side of one of the office towers, near the top of it.  Goten and Trunks changed their trajectory and headed towards the opening with Vil'Tani close behind.  Once they had entered the building the door closed behind them and several people flew towards Goten and Trunks.

"Prince Trunks, Goten, I have some good news to relay to you." The first person said as they reached the trio.  Trunks and Goten looked at one another and flew towards their destination.  The people who approached them followed, "Our business is expanding extremely fast.  We still aren't able to keep up with the demands but we think we've developed a way around that problem.  If we commissioned some more stores on other planets we would have access to more resources and quicker then we do now."

Trunks and Goten looked at one another and then back to the alien in the business suit, "Sure, let's start expanding.  Let the second stage of our operation commence."  Trunks said with a grin on his face.  Goten was rubbing his hands together in excitement.

The alien positively beamed when he heard that response and flew off to start work right away.  Another one replaced the first almost immediately and shoved some papers that required signing in Goten's and Trunks' faces.  The two sighed and Goten looked towards Vil'Tani, "I'm sorry, this'll probably take awhile, how about you go ahead and get the stuff; I'll have someone come and guide you to where everything is."

Vil'Tani nodded affirmatively and yet another alien appeared in front of her when Goten snapped his fingers. "Make sure she gets everything she asks for.  Treat her as you would me or Trunks."  Goten told the alien.

The alien nodded and took off in the direction of the storage facilities.  Vil'Tani quickly caught up and began to describe to him what they required.  "We'll need several yards of rope, a bucket, some spiders, a lot of chocolate and a gerbil."  Vil'Tani said to the alien.

The alien didn't bat an eye although at the list, although he did wonder why anyone would need a gerbil and pitied the fool that found out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day…

The peace in the area around the floating garden was broken by a shrill girlish scream.  The kinds of scream guys do when they have a bucket of cold water dumped on their unsuspecting heads while they were asleep.  Goten shot out of bed gasping and screaming as the cold water gushed down his head and torso.  Vil'Tani stood beside the bed with her hands behind her back holding something rather large as she whistled an innocent tune.  Vil'Tani was wearing black tank top with a pair of baggy black trousers that were tied at the waist.  A red headband kept her long hair out of her face although a few strands did hang over.

Goten glared at her, "Why did you do that?"  Goten complained as he looked at the clock, "It's only 9:00 in the morning, I can still sleep."

"And what about the academy Goten?  Did you forget today was the first day? Class starts at 10 and you have yet to get ready."  Vil'Tani said in a sickeningly sweet voice that made Goten shiver in trepidation.

"Uhh…  Oh ya, today is the first day…  I guess I forgot… But the academy is only a five minute flight away, I got time to sleep!"  Goten whined.

Vil'Tani sighed in exaggeration, "Oh I suppose you are right, go back to sleep for another thirty minutes, just don't complain to me when you reach school hungry because you got up to late to eat your mothers already prepare breakfast…"  Vil'Tani never got any farther as a sonic boom signalled the exiting of Goten as he raced for the kitchen.  All a sudden a cry of disappointment could be heard from the kitchen as Goten realized he had been tricked and there was no breakfast.

Vil'Tani hummed a tune as she walked out of Goten's bedroom, with the bucket in her hand, to go consolidate Goten.  Chichi had already gone to the garden and had given Vil'Tani enough money to feed Goten when he got to the Academy.  Suddenly Goten appeared in front of her with an angry look on his face.  The yellow hair and teal eyes made him look menacing but Vil'Tani wasn't worried, for some reason she had this feeling that it was impossible for Goten to actually hurt her.

"You lied to me!  There is no breakfast waiting!"  Goten shouted his complaint.  

High above in the garden Chichi just smiled to herself, _Ahh__, their first argument, the beginning of a beautiful relationship.    _

Vil'Tani just gave another little smile, "Don't worry, your mother gave me enough money to buy you lunch… but only at the academy so the sooner you get ready…"  Vil'Tani left it unfinished because finishing it she didn't need to do.

Another sonic boom and Goten was off racing around the house as he got ready for his first day, and more importantly, is breakfast.

Despite his speed it still took Goten half an hour to get fully prepared.  Vil'Tani wouldn't let him out of the house until he had taken a proper shower and that, by itself, took twenty five minutes and three attempts.

Eventually they got air born and headed in the direction of the capital.  Each major city had its own academy, but the most esteemed one was located in the capital itself.  Vil'Tani hummed a little tune to herself as she led Goten.  Said saiyan acted like a hungry puppy following its master to its bowl of food, which was pretty much the case here.  Vil'Tani knew that the threat of taking the food away, and the ki pan that Chichi had for some strange reason insisted on her learning that morning, that she could keep Goten in line whenever she wanted, although she doubted she could honestly deny him anything that he truly wanted.

The couple soon reached the gates to the city and were admitted on sight.  There weren't many normal saiyans around and everyone that was had instant access to almost any facility anywhere on the planet with the exception of a few high security areas in the palace.  Another short flight across the city, short for those two anyways, and the academy came into sight.

The academy had a large wall that surrounded the complex and a force shield went around the complex, just like the city.  The only difference was that the shield wasn't to protect the academy from outside forces, but to protect the outside from the inside forces, meaning the many of stray energy blasts and waves that go awry in the compound.  There was about twenty meters of open space between the wall and the main building at all times offering an expanse for the first year students to practice.  There were several other courtyards within the complex for more experienced and older students.  The main building was twenty stories high at its peak and five at its lowest.  The entire thing, wall and building, was made out of black rock and could withstand anything short of a planetary bombardment.  Jokes used to be made that it could but recent history had shown otherwise.

The two landed before the front gates of the academy and as they approached a grizzled saiyan warrior marched out to greet them.  The saiyan had brown hair and brown eyes like the majority of the devolved saiyans and had his brown tail wrapped around his waist.  The saiyan was wearing the standard battle armour with a blue insignia on his right chest plate.

"Landyn?"  Goten asked incredulously.

"What?"  Landyn asked innocently, "I can't be an Instructor?"

Goten scratched his head for a moment, "Well…  I just never thought…"

"Yes, that's right, you never did think."  Landyn said, "Now, I retired from the royal guard when it became more symbolic then necessary.  When the person your guarding is infinitely stronger then you, there's no point in guarding him.  I asked to be retired but Vegeta had other plans.  He wanted someone to keep an eye on you, and so here I am."  Landyn said to Goten.  Landyn turned to look at Vil'Tani, "As for you young lady.  Vegeta knows of your… problem and in light of that has given me this letter to give to you.  Inside it reveals the fact that all instructors at this academy are of higher rank then you and should be given the respect due.  While you are here you are not a general of some foreign planet, you are a student, and you will be spoken to as one, disciplined as one, and treated as one.  In that letter it will also reveal several other people who are not instructors that are also of higher rank then you while you are studying here at this academy.  You should pretty much think of yourself relieved of duty while you are here."

Vil'Tani read the letter over and flushed in embarrassment at a particular name.  Vil'Tani looked up at Landyn and sighed as she folded up the letter and put it in her pocket.

"I assume what I said was verified by the letter?"  Landyn asked.

"Yes Sir, it was."  Vil'Tani replied.

"And don't call me sir, just call me Landyn.  Sir makes me sound old."  Landyn said.

"But you are old!"  Goten protested.

Landyn glared at Goten before he smirked and pulled out a letter, "I've prepared in advance many of these letters for just about every situation you could get into.  You take one wrong step and they are off to your mother.  We'll let HER handle you."  Landyn stated.

The blood drained from his face at the thought of facing his mother's wrath, or more importantly, the wrath of the ki pan.  Vil'Tani looked at Goten sympathetically for a moment before she realized that soon he would feel that fear when facing her and grinned instead.  When Goten looked over at Vil'Tani for support and saw her grin at him he became extremely nervous as well as fearful.

"Ahhh…"  Goten said as he struggled for the words, "Don't worry I'll…  Treat you with all the respect I think you deserve."

Landyn frowned, "I'm not stupid, you treat me with the respect 'I' think I deserve, not you."

"Right, the respect 'I' think you deserve, not you, got it." Goten said and quickly changed the subject, "Where are our schedules?"

Landyn frowned for a moment but shook his head, Goten couldn't be that smart, "You'll have to get your own schedules; I'm not your lap dog.  Just ask the attendant at the main desk and he'll send you in the right direction."  Landyn said and with that he turned and flew away.

Vil'Tani and Goten looked at one another and stifled a laugh as they walked into the compound side by side.  The gates of the compound closed behind them as they entered with a loud booming sound.  As the two looked around they saw groups of young saiyans, as well as other aliens, talking among one another in small groups or just pairs.  Almost everyone had someone to be with as it was not unwise to walk around the academy without someone watching your back.  Vil'Tani and Goten quickly caught onto the atmosphere and began to do likewise for one another almost without thinking about it.

The two made quiet the scene as they walked through.  Goten was one of the few normal saiyans and stood very high in society.  Many were jealous of the seemingly effortlessness he had to put into life to get to where he was.  They all wanted to know the secret to becoming normal and many had their different opinions and methods on how they sought to extract that information.  Nearly all of the saiyans and aliens that were at the academy were sons and daughters of highbred people in the saiyan society and their families had been fixed in their place for generations.  They disliked that nearly everyone else their age and younger looked up to Goten when they should be the idols of the younger generation.  They regarded Vil'Tani just as bad.  They did not know who she was but by being close to Goten she had thrown her lot in with him and would be treated the same.

Despite the hostile atmosphere of the courtyard the two entered the main building without incident.  The attendant at the main desk looked up as the door opened and looked at Goten and Vil'Tani with a blank expression on his face.

Goten approached the attendant, "Do you know where we can get our schedules?" Goten asked.

The man frowned and then said.  "Just continue straight down the hallway, don't turn into any side ones and the door at the end is the office."

Goten thanked the man and the two continued down the hallway.  The interior of the building looked much like the exterior, straight hallways of clean cut black rock.  Nothing adorned the walls aside from the odd picture of one famous battle or another.  At regular intervals metal doors could be seen.  Beside each door was a scanner that required a specific hand print to open it.  This was to prevent students from entering restricted areas.

After several minutes of walking Vil'Tani and Goten finally reached the end of the hallway.  This door was much like all the rest, the only difference was the fact that two large burly guards stood at attention in front of the door with their arms crossed.

One of the guards looked at Vil'Tani and Goten, "You two are expected, you may enter."  The guard said.

With that the two guards stepped out from in front of the door and allowed the two children to enter the office.  The look of the office was like a sledgehammer between the eyes.  It was in stark contrast with the rest of the main building.  The entire interior was painted a dark blue.  That wasn't the only difference, carpet covered the entire floor and several hovering balls of light floated here and there depending on the room's occupants current demands.  Book shelves covered the left and right walls and were completely filled with volumes detailing just about every aspect that was covered in the academy and more.  Where there wasn't a book shelf, paintings and wall hangings could be seen giving even more life to the room.  On top of all that a large C shaped desk stood in the center of the room.  Upon the desk were two computers, both currently in use, as well as a couple stacks of paper.  A large window overlooking the most interior training ground was located at the far end of the room giving a clear view of every aspect of it.  Behind the desk was a rotating chair with padded seat, back and arms.  Although the room looked more fitting for a palace it wasn't the room that surprised Goten and Vil'Tani the most, it was Landyn sitting in the chair behind the desk with his hands folded under his chin and elbows on the desk looking at them that got them the most.

"You two sure took your sweet time getting here."  Landyn growled, "You'll learn to be more punctual while you are here."  Goten just stared at Landyn with his mouth open and Vil'Tani wasn't in much better condition, "And close your mouths, you look like a pair of fish out of water."  Landyn snapped.

"But… but…  You… you… never told us you were also the administrator!"  Goten gasped out.

Landyn smirked, "I didn't know I was forced to tell you everything about myself and my position."

Goten was about to say something else but stopped as Vil'Tani's hand touched his arm, "Can we have our schedules Si… Ahhh Bardock.?"  Vil'Tani slipped.

Landyn smiled, "It seems you're the sensible one.  Yes, you can have your schedules.  There isn't any point in signing you up here and then not telling you what classes you have or where they are located."  Bardock said as touched the screen of the right monitor a couple of times.  Soon a single schedule appeared and Bardock handed it to Vil'Tani.  "There, those are you classes."  He said.

Goten looked at Bardock quizzically, "What about mine?"

Landyn looked over at Goten with a smirk on his face, "What's the point of wasting paper when you two have the same classes and I highly doubt you will stray really far from one another."  Landyn said.

Goten's eyes widened in surprise, "You mean to tell me that I have EVERY single class with her?"  Goten asked incredulously.

Landyn just leaned back and grinned evilly.

Goten sighed, "Why me… Why am I stuck with her all day, every day until the end of the semester?"  Goten complained.

Vil'Tani frowned and waved some money in front of his face, "Did you forget that I have to money for your breakfast?"  She asked in a sweet voice.  The grumble that emanated from Goten's stomach was all the answer anyone needed.

Landyn smiled at the exchange, "Why don't you take him down to the cafeteria before he starves to death."  Landyn said, "Just go out the same door you came in, take the second right, and follow your nose."

Goten started drooling at the prospect of food and bounded for the door almost immediately and would have raced all the way there had he not remembered that Vil'Tani was the one holding his breakfast in her little hands.  Vil'Tani just giggled at the scene Goten was making and quickly followed him out the door before he decided picking her up and carrying her would get him the food faster, not that she wouldn't mind him doing that.

The two followed Landyn's instructions and soon reached the cafeteria and, much to Goten's delight, there was more food available out in the open there he could possibly eat in a week.  Vil'Tani walked up to the counter with Goten trailing right behind her.  She looked over her shoulder and then back to the cafeteria server, "This guy is hungry, could you feed him?"  Vil'Tani said in a slightly condescending tone.  "I have enough money to pay for his meal."

The cafeteria server looked over at Goten and then back to Vil'Tani.  He pointed to the huge buffet in the center of the room.  "Give me 15 zigots and he can eat all that he wants from there."

Vil'Tani nodded and handed the money over.  Before the money had even finished exchanging hands Goten was already racing towards the center of the room where the buffet table was located.  Vil'Tani just shook her head and smiled to herself as she watched Goten dig into the food.

Because Goten was so focused on the food and Vil'Tani was so focused on Goten, neither noticed a pair of eyes staring hungrily at Vil'Tani. The large teenage saiyan quietly left the cafeteria to work on some plans.  Plans that would allow him to get the girl that he had already claimed in his mind.  She was a beauty and for her to be allowed admittance into this academy meant she was in a high position indeed considering she was an alien.

Twenty minutes later Goten and Vil'Tani walked out of the cafeteria with Vil'Tani looking over the schedule and Goten patting his stomach happily.  Vil'Tani scanned at the room number and then at the door closest to them and frowned.  She turned right and began to walk down the hallway with Goten trailing behind.

"What class do we have first?"  Goten asked curiously.

"We have Tactics, Military Tactics first."  She responded, not taking her eyes off the sheet.

"What's our second class?"

"Weapons"

"Third?"

"Techniques, Ki and otherwise."

"Fourth?"

"Something neither of us need."

"What?"

"Oh shut up and just look at the sheet and stop asking me, I'm not going to bite if you look over my shoulder."  Vil'Tani said as she shoved the schedule under his eyes.

Goten looked at it and smiled happily, "Strength, our fourth class is strength building, we won't need that one."  Goten said smugly.

"I just said that."  Vil'Tani replied.

"No you didn't."

"Yes I did."

"Nuh uh."

"I give up, fine you said it first.  Our last class is history for your information, just in case you're too blind to see it."  Vil'Tani said as she took the sheet away from his eyes.

Goten began complaining, "But I hate history!"

"Well to bad, I wasn't the one that made up the schedule, just live with it." Vil'Tani said in disgust.

Goten pouted and began to sniffle a little.  Vil'Tani looked over at Goten, sighed and melted under the look on his face, "Don't be upset, I have to live through it as well."  She said comfortingly as she rubbed his cheek.

Goten jumped back and into the wall, "AHH!!  Don't do that!"  Goten yelled before continuing on in a subdued voice, "Stupid Karie, she just had to say girls were going to start crawling all over me didn't she…"  Goten grumbled as his voice became quieter and quieter.  Vil'Tani just smiled to herself because she knew deep inside his heart that he didn't mind.  She wasn't sure how she knew, there was just that feeling.

The two walked in silence for a few minutes before Goten spoke up once again, "I wonder what classes Trunks got."  He said wistfully, "Do you think he got the same as us?"  He asked hopefully.

"Probably not, he may have a few but he's going to be king, what he needs to know and what you need to know are two different schools of information."  She said as she combed her hand through her long hair.

Goten sighed unhappily and became quiet again.  Neither spoke again along the way to their first class.  The only reason why Vil'Tani was able to navigate her way through the hallways was due to the fact that they were straight and the doors were numbered properly and in a logical manner.  They soon reached their destination, a minute before the bell was about to ring.  As they entered the classroom they noticed that most of the seats were filled, although no one was sitting quietly.  Many were chatting amongst one another in their groups plotting against one another.  Goten was just about to find a seat when a very familiar voice rang out.

"HEY! GOTEN AND VIL'TANI!  OVER HERE!"  Trunks yelled across the classroom from the back as he waved them over with one hand and pointed towards two empty seats side by side near him.  Goten smiled happily and bounded up the steps towards the back of the class with Vil'Tani close behind.

When the two of them reached Trunks they noticed a couple of people standing beside him, one male and one female.  Trunks was still smiling as the two arrived and quickly bent over, "Did you bring the stuff?"  Trunks asked in a hushed tone.

Goten and Vil'Tani just grinned and response and looked over at Goten's backpack.  Trunks grinned as well and rubbed his hands together in anticipation.  Trunks suddenly remembered the two people standing just behind him and straightened, "Goten, Vil'Tani.  I'd like you to meet Cain and Riho.  They're two people I just met."  Trunks said to Goten and Vil'Tani.  Trunks turned to Cain and Riho, "Guys, the guy with yellow hair is Goten, my best friend and his girlfriend Vil'Tani."  Trunks said to him.

Goten squawked at that, "Girlfriend!  She's not my girlfriend Trunks!"  Goten protested.

Vil'Tani swatted him across the head, "Oh be quiet you big baby."  Vil'Tani said in exasperation.

Riho giggled but became a little down, the easier of the two guys she had her eyes on was already taken.  She looked over at Trunks, _At least he is still available_, she thought.  Riho was wearing the standard saiyan battle armour for females and had a blue insignia on her right chest plate.  Every saiyan that went to the academy had a blue insignia showing that they were first class.  With the breastplate she wore blue spandex body suit.  Riho had short black hair that went down to her neck and black eyes.  A brown tail was waving behind her.  

Cain on the other hand didn't care at all that Goten was taken.  He idolized Goten and Trunks and being in the same group as them, and possibly partaking in some of their pranks, was everything he had ever hoped for.  He wore black spandex body suit and an older model of the body armour.  His had shoulder and waist plates were as Riho's didn't signifying that although Cain was first class his family wasn't really rich.  Cain had really short spiky black hair and black eyes although that's a trait shared by just about every devolved saiyan.

All of a sudden there was a large explosive sound and everyone whipped their heads around to stare in the direction it had come from.  At the front of the class room stood a muscular female saiyan with a scowl on her face, "Alright you lazy pieces of shit sit down and prepare to learn.  You have a lot to learn and little time to learn it in.  I don't give a shit who or what you think you are, while you are in THIS class room you follow what 'I' say.  Got it?"  The instructor barked out.

There was a lot of shuffling and movement for a few seconds before everything became dead still as everyone stared attentively towards the front.  The five at the back sat from left to right, Vil'Tani, Goten, Trunks, Riho, and Cain.  The instructor couldn't make Vil'Tani, Goten or Trunks to do anything but the two boys have gotten threat of parental punishment if they stepped out of line and Vil'Tani was polite to everyone who was ranked above her, no matter their strength.

The saiyan smirked, "So good of you to comply to my wishes so quickly.  You wouldn't want to get on my… bad side now would you?"  She asked quizzically.  Then with another barking laugh she began to lesson. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

An hour later…

Goten staggered out of the room with Vil'Tani and the others close behind.  Learning the stuff was easy, his mother had forced him to learn more quickly then that, but it was the way it was taught that got him.

"Did she have to be so… graphic?"  Goten complained.

Vil'Tani hit him over the head again, "It sank in didn't it?  It may be a crude way of teaching, but it is effective."  She said.

Trunks laughed a little before he shrugged his shoulder, "It wasn't so bad, father was a lot worse then she was when he was teaching me earlier this month." Trunks said and shivered as he remembered some of the lessons.  Bad enough to be told what a saiyan heart looks and does but to have his father shove one in his face and make him feel and smell it as well was a bit much in Trunks' opinion.

"What classes do you have Trunks?"  Goten asked, "I was going to ask in class when we first met but I never got to before the teacher arrived and then it didn't seem like a good idea to say it."

Trunks nodded in agreement.  I have Tactics first and weapons second, I can't wait to get a hold of a weapon."  Trunks said as he rubbed his hands together in excitement. "Then I have Politics, languages including foreign and then history."  He finished.

Goten sighed, "We only have three classes together, the first two and history.  The other two I don't share with you…  I was kind of hoping I would because that way I wouldn't be stuck with just Vil'Tani for all five classes."  Goten said in misery earning another slap across the back of the head, courtesy of Vil'Tani.

Riho spoke up at that point, "I don't have weapons or history."  She said in disappointment.  I have Tactics, then math, then techniques, strength and then geography… Argh…  My parents think I need to know SOMETHING about the landscape of the planet.  Stupid parents."  Riho said in disgust.

Cain just smiled happily, "I'm happy, I have a class with either Goten or Trunks or both all the way through so I don't mind."  He said cheerfully.

Riho gave him a disgusted look, "You're weird you know that?"  Riho asked.

Cain shrugged and grinned, he didn't care what any thought of him, with the exception of Goten and Trunks.

Riho just sighed and decided to talk to the other more intelligent people, "Well, I'm off to my next class.  I don't want to be late if the other instructors are anything like THAT bitch was." Riho said.

A throat cleared behind her, "What did you just call me?"  The instructor asked.  She had been eavesdropping on their conversation, she knew about Goten's and Trunks' tendency to pull pranks and wanted to head any off that might occur.  Riho, unfortunately, hadn't counted on her listening in.

Riho gulped and slowly turned around to stare wide-eyed at the instructor.  "Uhh… N-Nothing I-instructor…  I-I ahh… wasn't talking about y-you." She stammered out quickly.

She raised an eyebrow along with her right arm, "Oh really…  That's not the impression that I got…  Don't you have another class you have to get to?"  She asked in a calm voice, a deadly calm voice.

Riho looked over at the others, back to the teacher and then back to her group before she bolted down the hallway. The instructor barked a laugh before she levelled her gaze onto the other four.  No word was needed as the four soon found themselves bolting for their next class.  The four made quite the scene running through the hallway but no one said anything because there wasn't a single student that wasn't hurrying at least a little.

When they finally reached and entered the room where they would be trained with weapons they stopped and gazed around in wonder.  Nearly every type of melee weapon lined the walls ranging from daggers and short swords too huge two-handed battle axes and halberds.  The center of the room was taken up by a huge mat where the fighting took place.  The mat was completely red making stains less noticeable. The four moved towards the center of the room still gazing about at all the different types of weapons.  While the four were awe struck by the weapons the room slowly filled up and the weapons master walked in after the bell went.

"Alright you lazy shits, stop gawking at the weapons and pick the one that interests you the most, make sure you pick correctly because you won't be able to exchange it afterwards."  The weapons master shouted out.

The students began to filter around the room as they looked for the 'perfect' weapon for them.  Trunks ended up taking a plain broadsword and Goten picked up a katana while Cain picked up a pair of daggers.

Vil'Tani smiled as she found the weapon she was looking for.  She lifted a large double bladed battle-axe from the wall and hefted it easily in one hand.  She smiled and gave it a few test swings before she leaned against it.

Suddenly laughter erupted from across the room making everyone look in that direction.  A young saiyan leaned arrogantly against the wall furthest from Vil'Tani with a flail in his hands as he looked at Vil'Tani.  "Look at that girl over there, trying to use that huge axe. Ahaha, I can't believe this, she'll be easy meat to beat, I doubt she'll even be able to swing it more then a couple times before her arms fall off."  The saiyan laughed causing his friends to laugh along with him.

Goten walked over to join Vil'Tani and glared at the group.  He was about to say something but Vil'Tani laid a hand on his arm, "Let me handle this."  She said as she walked forward a couple of feet.  "So you don't think I can use this eh?"  She asked.

The saiyan just sneered at her.

Vil'Tani turned her back to him and grinned evilly at Goten.  She took a step forward before she suddenly spun around and threw the axe at the saiyan.  The axe whirled in a perfectly straight line handle of head until it embedded itself with a large crack into the stone wall just inches from the saiyans face.  The room went dead silent because of the stunt.  Suddenly the weapons master laughed heartily, walked over to Vil'Tani and slapped her on the back.

"Good work; with just a little training I can make you a true expert.  I love seeing people that know what they are doing."  He said as he walked away again laughing.

Vil'Tani smiled and went to retrieve her weapon of choice.  As she reached the saiyan she smirked in his face as she wrenched the weapon free from the wall. "Never underestimate me, got it?"  She whispered to him.

Vil'Tani walked back to Goten and sat beside him on the ground in front of the mat.  Goten smiled at her, "Hehe, did you see his face?  That was priceless, I wish I had a camera, that way I could have taken a picture of it.  Imagine that picture spread all across the academy, aha."  Goten laughed.

Vil'Tani smiled as she held up a tiny video camera that she had kept hidden, "Don't worry about that Goten."

Goten just arched back and laughed even louder causing the other saiyans to look at the two nervously.

The instructor walked to the center of the mat before he stopped and looked at everyone, "Alright, I want you and you to come on the mat now."  He said as he pointed to two random saiyans.  One was a female who carried a bladed staff while the other was a male who carried twin scimitars. "Each of you will fight here today, or if not today, then tomorrow.  I want to judge where you are at skill wise and how much I need to teach you idiots."  He said as the two selected saiyans approached him, "Oh, and begin."  He said as he walked away.

The female saiyan charged forward and slashed at the male but found only air as her opponent dodge to the right.  She judge away as the guy slashed at her.  She smirked and brought the opposite end of her staff up to hit him in the chin before she whirled around and slashed his stomach open with the blade.  The male saiyan fell and dropped his left scimitar so he could use that arm and hand to hold his insides in.  He snarled and leaped forward at the surprised girl and shoved the blade of his scimitar through her left shoulder shearing straight down to just above her heart.  She reared back in pain and slashed forward with her bladed-staff in desperation and shoved the blade into the male's side.  Both stumbled back with the others weapon still inside their bodies.  The girl ripped the scimitar from her shoulder and snarled before she jumped at the other.  The guy couldn't get the staff in time due to its bulkiness and was reward by a large gash down the front of his face.  The guy fell over and hit the ground unconscious and was soon followed by the girl as both passed out due to blood loss.

The weapon master shook his head and laughed silent as he approached the two prone saiyans, picked them up and carried them to a long line of regeneration chambers in an adjacent room.

Goten and Vil'Tani looked at one another before saying in unison, "This is going to be a very bloody class."  The two blushed and looked away.

The rest of the class went pretty much like the first match with either one or both saiyans forced into a regeneration chamber to heal.  Soon the last match of the class went underway.  Cain walked towards the center of the mat to face off against another male saiyan.

_This is my chance to show Goten and Trunks what I am made of_, Cain thought as he twirled his daggers.  Almost before the instructor had said begin Cain was already springing into action.  His opponent wielded a huge two-handed sword and that was to Cain's advantage.  As Cain approached the other saiyan swung directly down at him but Cain just side-stepped the attack and jabbed both of his daggers in the guys chest, burying them up to their hilts before twisting and yanking them out the side.  Cain jumped to the right as his opponent fell flat on his face, dead before he hit the ground.

"Oops."  Was all Cain said as he looked at his opponent.

The weapons master just sighed as he picked the corpse up and tossed it into a metal shoot embedded into the far wall, "Try not to kill the next one?  We'd like to have at least a tenth of the saiyans graduate this time."

"Yes instructor." Cain said as he went and sat back down beside Trunks.

Trunks raised his eyebrow at Cain, "You killed him on purpose didn't you?"  He asked.

Cain coughed, "Ahh…  I really didn't like him.  He threatened my little sister and no one does that…  Well he won't be doing that anymore."  He responded.

Trunks nodded, he could see where Cain was coming from.

The weapons master looked at everyone and said, "Alright, that's enough for today, the rest of you that didn't fight today will do so tomorrow.  I'm expecting at least a few good matches, I never thought people could be worse then last years bunch…  I suppose I was wrong.  Now get the fuck out of here and get to your next class."

With the students walked out of the room talking excitedly to one another about the fights.  Nearly everyone loved them and couldn't wait to see tomorrow's fights because the two normal saiyans would be fighting that day as well as the axe wielding maniac Vil'Tani.

The four conversed with one another out in the hallway, "Ahh, that just made my day." Cain said in satisfaction as he reminisced on his battle.

Vil'Tani gave him a look of disgust, "You actually took pleasure in killing him; I don't understand you."  She said.

"You're not a saiyan, you wouldn't understand.  Your boyfriend Goten probably feels the same way as I do."  Cain said as he shrugged his shoulders.

Vil'Tani protested, "He's not my boyfriend, and I doubt he finds killing people 'pleasurable'.  I know of several things better more interesting."  She said.

"And I suppose you plan on practicing all of them with him eh?"  Cain said with a smile on his face.

"Practice them with him?"  Vil'Tani asked in confusion.  Suddenly light dawned in her eyes and she flushed in embarrassment and anger, "Oh shut up! We're just friends!"

Goten scratched his head in confusion, "What things Vil'Tani?" He asked innocently.

Vil'Tani looked at him and was about to yell when she realized he was being sincere, "Nothing, you'll learn about them in due time."  She said.

"Oh, Okay."  He said and a smile returned, "I didn't mind the fighting but there are better things, like food, and chasing animals and sparring with my brother and father."  Goten said happily.

Vil'Tani looked over at Goten, "That's it?"

Goten thought about it for a moment, "Ummm…  Yup, oh wait, I also like pulling pranks with Trunks as well."  He said.

Vil'Tani growled, "Fine then; find your own way to class!"  She yelled at him and stomped down the hallway towards her third class of the day.  She stopped and looked back at Goten, "And you can forget about lunch!"  She yelled out again as she once again continued down the hallway.

Goten blinked in surprise, "What?!  What did I say wrong?  Wait a minute… NO LUNCH!  WAIT VIL'TANI! COME BACK!! WAIT FOR ME!"  Goten shouted as he raced down the hallway after Vil'Tani.

Trunks and Cain laughed at the exchange and Cain turned towards Trunks, "No matter how I look at it, those two are girlfriend and boyfriend in everything but name."  He said to Trunks.

Trunks nodded and smiled sadly, "Yes, yes they are.  They don't show it but they're both fiercely protective of one another.  I pity the fool that tries to get between them."  Trunks said as he led Cain off to their next class.

To be continued…

Alright I was going to do the entire first day but DAMN! CHECK OUT HOW LONG IT IS ALREADY!!  So I had to split it.  This is my longest chapter ever in the history my writing… which isn't really saying much but anyways.  It's about 16 pages and that's more then a lot of chapters from full fledge novels.  Anyways I hope you enjoy it.  It's pretty much all humour because well…  We've had pretty much all seriousness the past few.  Anyways, school is really starting to pile the shit on me so that's another reason I'm finishing this chapter here.  I want to get at least another out before I am forced to stop entirely.

Anyways, till next time, whenever that will be.    


	15. Chapter 14: The First Day at the Academy...

Alrighty everyone…  I've been doing some thinking and there will be some major skippage in the future.  As in months passing at a time and it'll probably more then likely be between this chapter and the next or in the next one.  I got a few more school ideas to apply and then I'll be out.  I got one or two Gohan scenes as well but after that…  There'll probably more then likely be a huge jump.

**Chapter 14: The First Day at the Academy (Cont'd)**

 "Come on Vil'Tani, what did I say wrong?"  Goten asked as he desperately tried to make up with Vil'Tani.  It was not a good idea to have a women stay mad at you for any length of time.

Vil'Tani glared at him, "If you don't know what it is then it's your own fault." She growled as she stomped down the hallway to their third class.

Goten sighed as he scratched his head, "How am I suppose to know if you don't tell me?"  Goten protested, "You're the only one that knows why you are upset, I don't know, and I want to know because I don't want you mad at me.  It doesn't feel good when you are."  Goten tried to reason.

Vil'Tani felt a warm glow on the inside but she didn't let it show, "Humph, you're just trying to get into my good graces so you can get your lunch back!"  Vil'Tani retorted.

Goten flapped his arms around, "That's not true!  Well… Maybe a little but I really do want to make up." Goten said hurriedly as he tried to assure Vil'Tani of his good intentions.

Vil'Tani turned to glare at him, "I was right, this IS about getting your lunch back, well, you've just lost it for good!"  Vil'Tani said as she whipped back around and headed towards the door leading into the next class.

When the two got into the class room they were surprised to see the 'class room' was actually an out door training area.  The entire area was blackened and burned from the blasts of countless ki manipulations gone wrong.  They quickly spotted Riho standing with another saiyan at the far end of the training area and soon joined her.  Riho smiled broadly as the two approached her.

"Hey guys, how's it going?"  Riho asked excitedly.  "I can't wait to show off all the cool techniques I know."

Goten grinned, quickly forgetting that Vil'Tani was mad at him, "Ya, me to, I know SO many things that my brother and father taught me, it's going to be great!" Goten said excitedly.

Vil'Tani glared at Goten, "You're so hopeless!"  She shouted at him.

Goten cringed, "I'm sorry!" Goten said although he had no idea what she was talking about, he just wanted her to quiet down.

Vil'Tani knew this and just crossed her arms under her breasts and glared at him.

Riho giggled and turned to her companion, "Anyways guys, this is someone I just met today, his name is Arsenic."  She said as she introduced the male saiyan to Vil'Tani and Goten, "Arsenic, that's Goten." She said as she pointed to the cringing normal saiyan.  Arsenic nodded to him in greeting "And that's Vil'Tani."  She said as she pointed to the Cerian.  A bright smile erupted on Arsenic's face as he heard Vil'Tani's name.

He approached the upset Cerian, "Oh my!  I didn't know that beings of such beauty existed in this universe."  Arsenic said with awe in his voice.  "My life is complete seeing someone as beautiful as you."

Vil'Tani looked at Arsenic in surprise for a moment before the red part of her eyes enlarged and started to glow eerily scaring all three saiyans, "Watch it, if I didn't know any better I would think you were trying to hit on me.  I'm not in the mood for your bullshit!"  She growled out in a very angry tone.

Goten looked at Vil'Tani in surprise.  He had never seen her like this before and it really disturbed him.  He resolved to ask Trunks to dig up information on Cerians.  He wanted to know what was going on.  Riho and Arsenic were both equally surprised at the vehemence in her voice.  They thought she looked and acted angry with Goten earlier but it paled in comparison to the look and tone she just used on Arsenic.

Arsenic shook his head for a moment to clear it and tried again, "I'm not trying to offend you.  I am just saying pure, unaltered truth.  You are the most beautiful creature to walk into this academy, of that I am sure."  Vil'Tani's pupils shrunk a little and the glowing ceased; Arsenic taking this as a good sign continued with a smile on his face, "Why don't you leave Goten?  He was obviously upsetting you earlier.  I can guarantee that you'll never be angry if you come with me.  I can make you the happiest women alive."

Arsenic saw that he should have quit earlier almost instantly as Vil'Tani exploded in anger.  The tiny red pupils in her eyes expanded to cover the entire eye and began emit red energy as her head bowed a little and a snarl appeared on her face.  A deep growl erupted from her throat as her hair started dancing and electricity played across her body.  "What did you just say?"  Vil'Tani said in little more then a whisper but the words carried across the entire room. Goten stood where he was gaping at Vil'Tani, he knew she wouldn't hurt him, at least he hoped she wouldn't.    

Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked over at the group.  Upon seeing Vil'Tani all fired up, almost literally, at Arsenic they decided it would be a good show to watch, from a distance.  Arsenic on the other hand knew he was in trouble and couldn't back away from it.  He couldn't detect people's life forces but he didn't need to, not when the person in front of him was visibly showing more power then he could ever possibly wield.

"Ah…  I think you took what I said the wrong way…"  Arsenic said as he desperately tried to find the words to calm the raging Cerian down, "I ah… just wanted to say that I would be a better choice then Goten… He's ah… had life easy with Trunks as his friend…"  He didn't get to say more as a shockwave erupted from Vil'Tani knocking everyone back with the exception of Goten.

"So…  You think you are better then MY Goten eh?  You think he has had an easy life?"  Vil'Tani said in the same low voice that carried across the room.  "How wrong you truly are!"  She snarled out and grasped Goten's arm and hugged it tightly. "My Goten is a far better person then you could ever hope to be!"  

Goten didn't pull away for various reasons, one of them being a horde of complex and unfamiliar emotions that roiled in his body, another being scared that Vil'Tani would turn on him.  Goten was utterly confused as to what was going on.  One moment Vil'Tani was angry at him and in the next he learned what it truly meant for her to be angry.  _Why is she defending me?  I thought she was angry…  I don't understand what is going on, why don't I pull away?  Goten thought to himself as he stared at Vil'Tani and realized something. __I can't pull away, why can't I pull away?  I…  I don't want to?  Goten thought in confusion as he tried to analyze all the emotions that were raging inside him. _Why do I feel so… content?  Whenever she touches me it feels so warm…  It scares me but… if it scares me why don't I pull away now?  Why didn't she accept his offer?  He's better with words then I am, he's more handsome, he comes from a richer family…  Why is she so possessive?  Why don't I mind her calling me hers?  Does that make her mine?  But I don't want her… do I?_ These thoughts went whirled through Goten's head in under a second._

Vil'Tani's eyes narrowed to mere slits as her anger rose even more, "How DARE you say those things about him!" She bit out.

The Instructor decided to step in at that moment; he didn't want to clean up a bloodstain this early in the year and he wanted to reassert his authority after he had lost most of it earlier that month. "Alright!  That's enough, shut up and calm down or I'll have you…"  The Instructor started to snarl out but was violently stopped.

"SHUT UP! I'M NOT TALKING TO YOU!" Vil'Tani snarled as she glared at the Instructor.  The air in front of her shimmered and a wall of invisible energy slammed into the Instructor sending him into and cracking the wall at the far end of the training area.  The Instructor slid down the wall leaving a smear of blood of it as he did.  The back of his skull had been destroyed and the brain smashed.

Vil'Tani turned her glare back onto the poor saiyan, who was currently trembling in his boots, and anger began to almost visibly roll off her in waves.  Goten was totally oblivious to the whole world around him and didn't notice the exchange.  He was still wrapped up inside his mind as he tried to organize and analyze his thoughts into a coherent pattern. _If I like her touching me… if I feel safe… warm… and… happy… with her does that mean that I… like her?  Goten thought confusion and his eyes widened as he thought that.  Everything clicked into place and it disturbed yet warmed him at the same time._

When Goten came to he looked at Vil'Tani in a slightly different light then before, "Vil…" Goten said as he smiled and stroked her cheek with his index finger.

The effect of that single word and touch on Vil'Tani was miraculous to say in the least.  She straightened noticeably and her eyes widened in surprise.  She turned to look at Goten, questions evident in her eyes yet she said nothing.  She noticed the difference in his gaze and the smile on his face and smiled in return.  Her eyes suddenly snapped back to tiny pinpoints of red as her hair stopped dancing and the electricity ceased.  The rage that had been flowing out of her not a second before vanished in an instant.

Vil'Tani smiled wider and closed her eyes as she breathed in deeply air that seemed strangely fresh.  She took another deep breath before remembering everything that had happened.  With a blush she let go of Goten's arm and hopped away a little.  She frowned at him, "This doesn't mean I'm still not angry at you!"  She said again but compared to what had transpired it was nothing.

Arsenic let his breath out that he hadn't noticed he'd been holding.  He had just brushed with death and he was glad he hadn't gone into her embrace so soon.  Vil'Tani whirled to glare at him, "I hope we won't have a repeat of what just happened."  Vil'Tani said slowly, her voice going quiet.

Arsenic bobbed his head up and down very quickly and slowly backed away from his position on the ground. "Don't worry; I have ah… no intention on pursuing you any more."  He said hastily.

Vil'Tani smiled, "Good, now that that is settled, nice to meet you."  She said as her mood took a 180 degree turn.

Vil'Tani turned to talk to Riho as the tension in the room dropped back down to almost nothing.  Arsenic looked over at Goten and mouthed 'I pity you man.'  Goten shrugged helplessly, _I don't mind her temper anymore, it's not like she will ever have any reason to get that angry with me, and compared to what I just saw, her usual temper is nothing_, He thought in response to Arsenic's mouthed opinion.  Many of the students had been hoping for blood but they weren't to upset.  They got a nice light show and there was no telling if she would stop with just that saiyan considering the mood she was in.

Not more then a minute later the doors burst open and Landyn stormed into the training area, looked around and after spotting Vil'Tani and Goten stomped over towards them.  The students that were in his way took one look at his face and quickly moved from his path and wisely so, he looked like he was on the warpath.  When he reached the group he looked around and bellowed, "ALRIGHT CLASS IS OVER! GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE BEFORE I COUNT TO 10 OR YOU ARE GOING TO GET WHAT THESE FOUR ARE!"

The room cleared almost instantly as the students raced for the exits as fast as possible not even possibly thinking that the four would get anything other then a beating to an inch of their life.  Once the area was cleared Landyn went to each of the doors and locked them.  After that he returned to the group and his face had become much different from before.

Arsenic was the one that spoke up first, "LANDYN!  She almost killed me; you said I wouldn't get hurt!"

Landyn shrugged, "I had no idea she would respond this violently, just shows they were a little further along then I had anticipated, and quit whining, you weren't actually hurt."  Landyn said in annoyance.

Goten, Riho and Vil'Tani looked at one another in confusion and then back at Landyn and Arsenic, "What's going on Landyn?"  Vil'Tani asked in confusion and curiosity.

Landyn smiled and turned to them, "It was a lesson that didn't involve an actual lesson.  There were many parts to it but let's just say… if you take anything out of it, take the lesson on manipulation and observation."  Landyn said and cleared his throat, "Did you really actually believe that a saiyan would say all those flowery words if they were actually trying to hook up with you?"  Landyn asked.  "The people here are all the elite saiyans, they are much more subtle, or forceful, then that."

Vil'Tani thought about it for a moment before she blushed beat red, "I guess not…  Why did you get him to say those words?"  She asked.

Landyn smiled, "Several reasons among what I've already said.  One is that you need to keep your eye out for stuff like that.  Saiyans won't use those flowery words, they'll either use manipulation or they'll use blunt force.  You can handle blunt force easily enough, but you handle manipulation very badly, your 'social' observation skills are also low quality.  You may be able to out strategize anyone here but when it comes to social battle situations you are hopeless." Landyn responded.

While Vil'Tani thought about what he had said Goten spoke up, "What did you mean when you said you 'they were a little further along then I had anticipated'?"  Goten asked making Riho and Vil'Tani become attentive.

Landyn smiled, "I meant in your relationship.  You Goten are too young to bond, it'll be about three years before you are of age, for girls it would be two.  Girls can bond at 13, guys at 14. Your brother was able to hold off for four years not bonding simply because he refused to bond anyone but the 'perfect' one.  You've already found your perfect mate.  As for Vil'Tani, unless I'm not mistaken, she will be able to either accept one, or give her own special racial bonding technique, in a few weeks, which means she'll have to wait three years before she can do anything.  She'll be very… receptive by the end of that time and all you'll need to do is just hint at doing anything sexual and she'll already be dragging you away."  Landyn said and smirked before continuing, "She wouldn't have acted that violently unless she was really close to the 'special' time of her race and she wouldn't have ceased that quickly if she hadn't chosen you, although her words were a dead give away.  She'll continue to act that way for the rest of her life which will either end naturally, in battle, or if you reject her but the later is highly unlikely.  You both love each other right now but currently neither of you has any of the 'urges' that overcome just about every race when they hit that special time so there won't really be any physical part to the relationship for several years."

Vil'Tani and Goten were both blushing profusely by the end of this tirade.  Both had tried to protest during his speech but he had just talked over them causing them to become more and more embarrassed.  Vil'Tani and Goten looked at one another and blushed even more.  Even though they had tried to protest they both knew inside that he was right.  Riho just sighed and hoped that one day she would have someone like that, and then she thought of Trunks and a smile grew on her face.

Arsenic looked over at Vil'Tani, "I actually am sorry for causing all this; Landyn offered me something that was too good to pass up."  He said apologetically.

Vil'Tani looked at him in askance.

"My family is now fist class, as am I.  He's going to train us so we actually have the strength that first class citizens possess as well.  I've always wanted to be first class, to not be looked down upon…  And he helped me fulfill my wish…  Although I almost lost it as soon as I had it."  He said with a little laugh.

"It's alright, I'm not angry at you anymore… Now I'm angry at Landyn."  She said as she glared at him.  The glare didn't do much considering she was still blushing.

Landyn just laughed, "Hey, don't give me that look, and don't worry, I should give you a medal for killing the Instructor.  He was the previous Administrator and he wasn't happy that he got replaced.  He was planning on killing me in my sleep so you did me a favour.  As for getting a new Instructor, I was hoping you and Goten would instruct the class.  Both of you know all techniques that are taught at this class already as well as far more advanced techniques then what are taught here.  Instructing the younger on how to control energy waves and manipulate their life force properly shouldn't be too hard.  As for control… either one of you are strong enough to control them and that light show you put on will deter anyone from trying to make you angry."  He said the later with a pointed look at Vil'Tani.

Goten and Vil'Tani were both staring at Landyn with bugged eyes, "WHAT!"  They said in unison, "You want US to teach the class?"

Landyn smiled and nodded.  The two looked at one another before Vil'Tani got a shrewd look in her eyes, "How much are you willing to pay us?"  She asked Landyn.

Landyn grinned, "How about perfect in the course and free food whenever you want."  He answered.

Goten was already bobbing his head up and down really fast, the free food was all he wanted, the perfect grades was just a bonus.  Vil'Tani looked over at Goten and sighed, "Fine, we have a deal."  She said, she'd been hoping for actual money but with Goten already accepting she was afraid Landyn would choose just Goten if she resisted.  She figured Goten wouldn't be able to teach a class properly on his own.  He would need a woman's touch to teach properly, her touch.

Landyn grinned again, "This works out great, you two will start tomorrow.  You will decide your own lessons and what-not.  The Instructor you just killed will have the course manual on him, just grab it off his corpse, oh burn it while your at it, the corpse that is, and read up on the manual to decide what to teach."  Landyn said and with that he turned on his heel and walked out of the training area with his hands in his pocket and a pleased smile on his face.

When Vil'Tani searched the corpse for the course manual she was surprised at how small it was.  It wasn't more then just a sheet of paper.  Most of it was just teaching a single high level technique and beating everyone into the ground that failed to do it properly.  Vil'Tani looked up at Goten and handed him the manual as he approached her.  _This is going to take some doing_, she thought and Goten just nodded in agreement.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two hours later…

Goten and Vil'Tani entered the weight room and waited for the Instructor to arrive as well as the other students.  Vil'Tani was thoroughly grossed out while Goten was humming happily to himself.  An entire cafeteria of saiyans eating, no shovelling food into their mouths wasn't her ideal spot to be while eating lunch.  Goten hadn't noticed the other saiyans, he was to busy having an eating contest with Trunks.  She would have left if she had thought of some way to pull Goten away from the buffet in the center of the cafeteria.  There wasn't even much conversation for her to join in upon.  As soon as Trunks met up with Goten he challenged him to an eating contest that automatically pulled Cain, Arsenic and Riho in.

Since the majority of the saiyans at the academy had taken the weight training course there were multiple rooms for each level of the academy.  Riho and Cain had unfortunately been assigned to a different room then Vil'Tani and Goten.  Arsenic and Trunks simply didn't have the class for various reasons.

Goten sighed as he looked at all the weights lying across the place, "This isn't going to be a challenge at all!"  Goten complained as he kicked a particularly large barbell across the floor.

Vil'Tani swatted him across the head, "Enough complaining, I swear you've been doing nothing but complaining all day long."  She said in exasperation.

Goten squatted down and pouted.  Vil'Tani sighed and looked around.  The place was beginning to fill up with other saiyans and smattering of aliens.  Massive racks of weights lay lined across the walls while in the center of the room were many machines and benches.  Mirrors were also placed in various places throughout the room.  Once all the students had gathered in the room a shadow detached itself from the corner of the room where it had lain unnoticed by everyone except Goten.

"Alright, this is the place where you are going to build your muscles."  A massively over muscled saiyan Instructor said as he neared the center of the room.  "These weights may look like nothing to a lot of you, and they are, if you are using your life force to help you lift them.  On that note you will all be given ki hampers that will make it impossible to use your life force to enhance your strength."  

Many people looked surprised but happy that as they realized they would actually get something out of the class.  Goten still looked bored while Vil'Tani looked nervous.  Goten looked over at Vil'Tani and whispered into her ear.

"What's wrong?"  Goten asked quietly.

Vil'Tani bit her lip, "I'm not sure how I'll react to the ki dampers…  I don't use ki to enhance myself…  I don't even have any life force."  She whispered back.

Goten's eyes widened, "No life force?  Then how are you alive and talking to me now?"  He whispered back.

Vil'Tani frowned before she looked into Goten's eyes, "You are the first person not of my race to know this…  Don't tell anyone, not Trunks, not Chichi, not even your own brother."  She paused and Goten nodded vigorously in agreement, "It's well known that our race draws our power from a crystal on our home planet… but what no one knows is that that crystal also holds our life force.  We all share one life force and to be cut off from it…  It would kill us.  It also means that should the crystal ever be destroyed… well no one truly knows what would happen but many suspects that my race and I would die instantly."  She said quietly.

Goten's eyes widened in surprise and horror and quickly looked up at the Instructor that was passing out an armband that dampened ones ki.

The Instructor soon reached the two and handed them both ki dampeners and walked back to the center of the room.  Goten looked at Vil'Tani with worry in his eyes.  She looked back and gave a small smile.

"Well, the sooner I try it, the sooner we find out eh?"  She whispered.

With a deep breath she slowly slipped the armband onto her arm.  With a shaky hand she pressed the button to activate it and waited for the worst.  When nothing happened she looked up at Goten and waved her arm around.

"That's odd…  I don't… feel any different."  She said.

Goten smiled happily, she may not feel any differently, but he sure did.  For some reason he felt a little weaker but he couldn't figure out why.  "That's good at least.  We won't have to worry about you croaking." He said with a small smile.  

Vil'Tani gave him a shove and frowned, "Oh shut up, this was a serious situation."  She said.

Goten nodded, "Ya, I know. That's why I'm trying to lighten the mood."  He said.

Vil'Tani looked down and rubbed her foot into the ground, "Oh… I'm sorry."  She said, "Anyways, put yours on!"

Goten nodded and slipped his onto his wrist.  As soon as he activated it he knew something was wrong but he didn't mention or show it.  He felt incredibly tired and drained.  He frowned and looked down at his hands.  He didn't feel any weaker, just very tired and it confused him a lot.  Neither of them nor anyone else noticed that the air between the two almost crackled and shimmered with unseen energy.

The Instructor cleared his throat and glared at Goten, "Alright, you are supposed to use your base strength, not your super saiyan strength, power down now."  He said.

Goten shrugged apologetically, "I can't.  I haven't been able to for over a month.  I'm like my brother now; I'm not able to devolve. My brother said something about a wish, I don't know.  Anyways this is as weak as I get."  He answered.

The Instructor frowned at what Goten said and opened his mouth to say something but thought better of it.  He turned and addressed everyone.  "Alright, now that you have your bands activated, start working out.  Every time I see you slacking off I'll fire an energy blast at you.  You can talk; just don't stop working out while you are yapping away."  He said as he turned to go admire himself in a mirror.

When Vil'Tani tried to lift some weights she found that, although she felt the same, she was indeed weaker, a lot weaker.  She could still lift the 200 pounds in one hand but it took a lot of effort, especially considering she was used to lifting several tons at a time.  Goten on the other hand had no problem with any of the weights.  He walked over to the biggest freehand weight and easily lifted it with one hand.  He sighed and started to juggle it for lack of anything better to do.  Lifting an 800 pound barbell was no challenge for him.

Vil'Tani brought the weight over to the preacher bench and began to curl it.  She was able to do the first set fine but she started to grow tired by the second.  She was struggling really hard and was about to give up when a pair of unknown hands helped her bring it up the rest of the way to her chest.

Vil'Tani looked up into the face of a saiyan she didn't know.  "If you want to do free weights you should get a spotter for you.  That way if you are to ever get into trouble with it someone is there to help you."  He said with a frown on his face, "You really should know better."

Vil'Tani thought for a moment before she smiled up at him, "Thank you for the information."  She said and the other saiyan nodded his head.

"My name is Varitech."  Varitech said as he stuck his hand out.

Vil'Tani smiled at him, "Hi, nice to meet you."  She said, "I'm Vil'Tani and I think I'll take you up on your suggestion of a spotter."

Varitech smiled a little and was about to say something but Vil'Tani turned away and headed towards Goten, "HEY!  GOTEN!"  She yelled, totally oblivious to the snarl that Varitech sent towards Goten. "I need your help."  She said in a quieter tone as she stopped beside him.

Goten turned and smiled at her, "Let me guess, you need someone to help you with your work out?"  Goten asked.

She smiled and nodded, "Yup, you read my mind.  Now come and help me."  She said as she tugged on his arm.

Goten nodded and followed after her as they headed towards a secluded corner of the room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After class…

By the end of the workout Vil'Tani and Goten both staggered out of the room exhausted.  Goten had no idea it would be that tiring and although Vil'Tani figured it would be, she hadn't been fully prepared for it.  Goten and Vil'Tani stumbled into their last period class, History, and took their seats at the back. They were one of the first people in so they had pretty much their choice of seat.  Trunks and Cain soon entered and joined them, a look of disgust on both their faces.  They hadn't been happy with their previous two classes.

Trunks looked over at Goten and Vil'Tani and said, "I'm seriously in the mood for some laughs, how about we generate some?"

Vil'Tani and Goten looked at one another and grinned in response.

Vil'Tani took brought the bag with 'the' stuff in it and opened it.  A squeaking sound emanated form within that quickly brought a smile to Trunks' face.  Vil'Tani quickly brought out two small containers.  One was filled with a moving mass of black spiders while the other one was filled with fast drying chocolate syrup.  Vil'Tani opened the chocolate syrup and then the spiders and quickly dumped the syrup into the container filled with spiders.  Before the spiders could move they were all covered in chocolate syrup which quickly hardened around them and prevented them from moving.

Vil'Tani looked up at saw Goten and Trunks grinning at her while Cain was rubbing his hands together with a maniacal gleam in his eyes.  When the Instructor came in the class began and proceeded like many of the others, as in the teacher giving orders and the students listening and obeying.  The four at the back didn't mind, especially not with what they have planned for after class.

The end of it came at last and the four got up and left, conveniently 'forgetting' the container of bite sized 'chocolates' beside Vil'Tani's chair.  The four left the class room and lined up against the wall opposite of the wall and continued to talk quietly in hushed tones about nothing as they watched the door.  Most saiyans love to eat chocolate but they were extremely hard to come by and none would admit to buying any.  So when the teacher found a container full of them she didn't bother questioning how the got there, she just gloated over the poor fool that lost their precious 'treat'.  

The four didn't have to wait long because not five minutes later the door to the class room burst open as the teacher ran screaming from it, or tried to scream.  It's a little hard to scream when there are spiders crawling throughout your entire throat and mouth.  Like all saiyans she didn't bother with chewing, she just shovelled them in and when the chocolate got warm and syrupy the spiders became active again.

The four fell over onto their asses laughing uproariously as this elderly female saiyan ran down the hallway with spiders dribbling out of her mouth and tears practically streaming down her eyes.  It's a little hard to blast something, or even kill it, when it's inside you.  Goten's back was to the wall laughing so hard he was having trouble staying upright even in a sitting position.  Vil'Tani was between his legs with her head against his chest.  She was having trouble breathing and tears were streaming down here eyes as she clutched onto Goten's shirt.  Cain and Trunks were both rolling around on the ground to either side of Vil'Tani and Goten and they were laughing so hard they were on the verge of losing control of their bladder.

After several minutes the four settled down and Trunks realized something, "Guys, we have to get out of here.  We are the prime suspects of this incident… although we're the prime suspect of every prank but that doesn't matter.  We should leave the scene of the 'crime'."  Trunks said and the other three nodded in agreement.  The four bolted out of the academy and headed to their respective homes; Trunks to the palace, Cain to his place in the city, and Vil'Tani and Goten to Goten's house in the woods.

----------------------------

Inside the Administrator's office…

Landyn couldn't stop laughing.  He had been keeping tabs on both Goten and Trunks the entire day long and was wondering when the prank would be pulled.  He couldn't believe what they did but that didn't stop him from laughing uproariously.

The elderly history teacher barged into the office and Landyn quickly changed his face to a passive stony look.

"I DEMAND that that that THOSE KIDS!  Be punished!"  The teacher yelled at Landyn.

Landyn raised an eyebrow, "What kids, and for what reason?  And may I remind you… You don't demand ANYTHING from me!"  Landyn responded.

The Instructor calmed down with a deep breath, "I'm sorry, now I want the prince and his cohorts punished.  They pulled a prank on me!"  He complained.

Landyn sat back in his chair, "Ummm… Let me think about that for a moment…  NO!"  Landyn yelled

The Instructor gaped at him, "What!"

"You heard me.  No.  It's not their fault you ate the chocolates, it's not their fault you were to stupid to observe that they were spider shaped, and you were also too stupid to not chew before you swallowed.  It is completely and utterly YOUR fault for your situation.  For all you know those spiders may have been for someone else and they just forgot them there were you, and your stupidity, happened to find them."  Landyn answered in a calm voice.

The elderly saiyan spluttered for a while before Landyn glared at him, "Now, I have more important things to do, I suggest you leave and prepare for tomorrow.  Or should I find a… replacement?"  Landyn asked.

The saiyan stiffened before he bowed and left.  As soon as the door closed Bardock rocked back in his chair and started laughing again.

"Oh MY!  I LOVE MY JOB!"  Landyn yelled and he laughed for an hour afterwards.

To be continued…

There, finished, how ya like it?  I thought it was cool.  There will probably be some Gohan and Vegeta in the next chapter as well as some REAL saiyan history.

Word definition: Many of you may not know what a warpath is.  I've used it as a name but it also has a dictionary definition.  It's pretty much means a hostile course of action or a route taken by a group of people out to make war.  I may also have already defined this in an earlier chapter or my previous story… oh well it's been so long that many forgot.

Also I was wondering.  What gets a story a lot of reviews?  Is it the word amount?  The rating?  The chapter amount or the main characters?  It sure the hell isn't story quality, I've seen some horrible stories with hundreds of reviews.  Just wondering what gets reviews.  I'm not about to start demanding them or anything, just curious as to what brings them in.

You know… I might go back through this story (not the first one because it's hopeless) and redo it.  I think there are many improvements I can do to it…  Of course I'm going to finish it first, no point in leaving you guys hanging.

I've been dropping lots of hints of future events in this chapter and the past ones.  Hope you guys have been picking up on them.  Lot's of fore shadowing going on :).

Another thing…  I probably won't be going into to much detail about the academy anymore.  Not unless something important is happening.  I'm just doing such a big thing about the first day because I want you to have a really good idea of the kind of stuff that goes on in it.  Quite probably there will never be this much again about the workings of the academy.  But damn, I've introduced like 4 new characters… man it's gonna be hard to keep them all sorted out and stuff.  If I forget one at some point don't lash out at me k? :).


	16. Chapter 15: Lessons

Alright, I've been sort of planning on what I'm going to be doing in the future and boy oh boy it's going to be unique :).  This is going to be the most unique self-insertion fan fiction you'll probably ever read. :).  Oh god I'm so excited about the end of this story… holy, I start quivering in anticipation just thinking of writing it :).  But damn, I love Arthain in this chapter, he's SO me in real life hehe.  So sarcastic heh.  Anyways, I love the development in this chapter :).

Oh, I got a picture of Vil'Tani if you wish to see her, I didn't draw it.  I just found it on the net and my god it fit so perfectly I decided to use it.  If I could remember who the maker was I'd give him credit… and then go and worship his other pictures because he's amazing.  If you want see what she looks like, send me an e-mail and I'll send you the picture.

Another thing, there is going to be an absolutely god like huge paragraph in this chapter, if you see it, you've hit the saiyan history.

**Chapter 15: Lessons**

Goten and Vil'Tani were still chuckling as they entered Chichi's house.  Vil'Tani leaned against the door and smiled at Goten, "I can't believe that went over so well, hehe."  Vil'Tani said chuckling.

Goten grinned back at her, "What did you expect, me and Trunks ARE the prank masters after all.  Knowing when and where to pull a prank is just as important as using the right materials."  He replied.

Vil'Tani stiffened a little and a tapping sound began behind Goten.  Goten slowly turned around and came face to face with an angry Chichi.  Goten back up a little and started waving his hands in front of him, "Ah…  You didn't hear that mom, we were perfect angels, I swear!"  Goten said quickly as he attempted to pacify his mother.

"Oh… is that right?  Then what is this prank you and Vil'Tani were just talking about?"  Chichi asked in a calm tone making Goten even more nervous.

Goten gulped, turned, grabbed Vil'Tani's arm and bolted from the house, or at least he tried to do that.  A flying ki pan in the face stopped his escape before he made it anywhere.  Chichi stomped over to Goten as her ki pan reappeared in her hand.

"I hope you like my new addition to my pans.  Kakkarot has no where to run but you do, so I had to develop a new way of getting you with them.  A mother must be able to discipline her children properly.  You may be fast but I no longer have to create my ki pans in my hands, I can now make them anywhere as long as I have a clear view of location."  Chichi said with a smile as she laid a foot on her son's back.  "Now, you're going to tell me what you did and then I'll decide a suitable punishment.  Or you can struggle…  But I wouldn't really do that if I was in your position."  Chichi said as she grinned down at her son.

Vil'Tani stood perfectly as she tried to hold a laugh in.  Goten looked up at Vil'Tani and pleaded with his eyes for some support.  Vil'Tani wisely shook her head no.  She wasn't about to stick her head into the line of fire, not when it was Chichi pulling the trigger.

-----------------------------------

In the Conference Room on the star ship Arganon…

Vegeta walked into the room to see everyone summoned seated in their proper places.  He grinned inwardly as he took his place at the head of the table.  The room wasn't large, but it was big enough.  An octagonal table was situated in the center of the room with a single chair at each of its edges.  Gohan was seated in the chair to the right of Vegeta and to his right was Karie.  To Vegeta's left sat Arthain, although he sorted just floated above the chair rather then actually sitting in it.  The last person in the room was Bardock who sat to Arthain's left.  Aside from the table, and the people seated there, the room held a few other points of interest.  A large window behind Vegeta gave a view of space passing by outside.  The center of the room held a holo-projector that could display anything from the internal design of a cell to the 3D projection of the universe.  The room was lighted by several glow bulbs that floated around the room such that there was never a dark shadow projected anywhere in the room aside from under the table.

Vegeta leaned back in his chair and looked around the room before he started to speak.  "I'm glad you all could make it, if you hadn't I would have been forced to kick your ass.  Anyways, now that the greetings are finished I'll get to why you have all been called here.  I'm here because I called this meeting; Gohan and Karie, you two are here because since you are both saiyans and should hear this; Bardock is here because he may soon join us and because since he is in charge of distributing my orders he has a right to know.  Arthain is here because he is the reason for this meeting.  He has agreed to reveal the true saiyan history to us, and if he doesn't this ship gets turned around and he can kiss his body good bye."  

There were mixed reactions, Gohan rubbed his hands together in anticipation while Karie and Bardock exchanged confused glances.  Arthain just grinned, he knew Vegeta wouldn't turn the ship around; they were in a loop the two of them.  Vegeta wanted to know the story to much to turn around and Arthain wanted his body to much to deny telling the story.

Vegeta glanced at Arthain and waved his hand signalling that he should begin.  Arthain nodded his head in acknowledgement before he addressed everyone in the room.  "I'm not sure how much bullshit the schools and books taught you about the saiyan history but as of now you might as well throw all that garbage out.  I've heard a bit of it, Planet Vegeta being the home planet, you guys…" Arthain says as he looks meaningfully at Vegeta, Gohan and Karie, "… have attained the 'legendary' status of super saiyan.  All that I've heard is bullshit."  Gohan nodded his head, he had figured that much out already, as had Vegeta.  Karie's eyes widened in surprise and she exchanged looks to an equally surprised Bardock.

"What do you mean?  Are you telling me I'm not a super saiyan?"  Karie asked as she brought her bewildered gaze back to Arthain.

Arthain grinned, he loved seeing these kinds of facial expressions, "No no I'm not… Of course I am, haven't you just heard what I said?"  Arthain asked making Karie a little upset.  Arthain quickly tempered his tone, "Ah, sorry for the outburst, it just seemed kind of obvious to me.  Please don't interrupt me while I'm speaking, you can ask questions afterwards.  Anyways, like I said, forget that history, what I am about to tell you is the true history.  Planet Vegeta was never your home planet; your ancestors all resided upon another planet.  This planet, although it may surprise you, was situated at the meeting point between the four quadrants, or you could say, the very center of the universe.  Have you ever wondered why we were naturally stronger, faster, and more intelligent then the majority of the races out there?  It sure wasn't by accident, it's because we were the 'chosen' of the universe.  Although that part got royally fucked over which I will get to eventually.  Our race is the oldest, which meant we were more technologically advanced then any other race.  We distributed technology to the other races and in exchange got the resources from their planets that ours didn't have, and all the guinea pigs we wanted for our experiments.  Our planet was one of a kind; I say was because there is another like it now which I will also get to as well.  I didn't know there was another until I came back but…  Anyways, in the center of our planet resided a world crystal.  It basically draws energy, not from this universe, but from the space between realities.  The only other planet like that is the one that girl comes from, Vil'Tani I believe.  Seeing her reminded me of our home world.  They use the crystal a little differently then we did but it's the same thing never-the-less.  Vil'Tani's race… what was it?  Cerians?  Anyways, they use the crystal as a single life force.  They insert their life force into the crystal at birth and draw upon it from that day until the day their body decays beyond usability. They draw all their energy and power from it.  This means that no single Cerian can run out of energy but should the crystal ever be destroyed, you can kiss their race goodbye because they will no longer be able to draw upon their life force.  We were smarter then that.  We didn't use the crystal as focal point for our life force, but as an enhancer.  We used to make us stronger, faster and have a higher mental capacity then what was naturally possible.  By utilizing the crystal like that we were able to evolve much more quickly and with more improvements then we normally could.  It got to the point where our children would be born with yellow hair and teal eyes.  Our race had completely evolved to the next stage, every last one of us.  Our race was prosperous for hundreds of thousands of years."  Arthain grinned as all of their eyes widened, "Yes our race is that old, we were the first, but we won't be the last.  Anyways forget about the last bit, you don't need to worry about that yet.  When I was born it was such a shock because I was born evolved, evolved beyond that of normal saiyans.  A few other evolved babies were beginning to appear as well.  This may surprise you Vegeta and Gohan, but it really shouldn't if you think about it.  The other saiyans that were born evolved were Vegeta, Raven, Arganon and Warpath.  There was one other… the only female born evolved…"  Arthain's hands clenched into fists as both rage and sorrow flash across his face but it lasts less then a second before he recovers, "Sorry about that burst of emotion let me continue.  When we were born there was much joy and our race began to think that the race as a whole was on the verge of evolving yet again.  Many had already evolved by that time, but they had to earn it, no one had ever been born evolved till we were.  We were pampered beyond belief, pampered the saiyan way of course, meaning we got the best foods, the best training instructors, the hardest foes to fight against, the best of everything.  Then came the day everything came crashing down.  She… Aerie had found a source to infinite power, and took hold of it.  I've said how the world crystal channels energy from between realities through it right?  Well it was meant to supply our entire race with energy, but imagine all that energy focused upon a single individual, an individual named Aerie.  As soon as we felt the energy of the world crystal leave us we knew there was something wrong, and a few seconds later, we were right.  The capital city erupted into a ball of fire and death.  No one within it, no matter the strength, survived the blast.  Out of it crawled Aerie, now transformed, into a beast of glowing cyan energy.  Although we lost our capital along with the royal family we were not dismayed, we were the chosen race.  Within a few seconds of the energy leaving us the capital was razed, a minute later the whole of the saiyan race was pitted in a battle against her.  We knew we had to get her off the planet or we would lose.  We managed to do it, but not without great loss.  Aerie had just newly come to her power so she struggled against it as much as she did against us, and at that time she still held some of her sanity.  No matter what she does we cannot call her evil because I doubt she even has any idea what she is doing.  When she was removed from the planet we set into motion a plan to trap her.  We knew we couldn't kill her, and the fledgling races around us wouldn't be of much help so we were on our own.  We may have been able to kill her if we still had the world crystal but life is never that easy.  The most powerful members of our species got together: Me, Vegeta, Raven, Arganon, and Warpath.  We had been friends since nearly the cradle so we were not only the strongest, but we were so close together we had formed bonds of our own, special bonds.  The little saiyans, Goten and Trunks, will form such a bond when they reach of age.  Those two are closer then even we were.   Anyways, we each led a portion of the saiyan race.  We never even thought about leaving the children and old out from the battle, everyone from 1 years of age to those nearly on their death beds fought and battled Aerie across the breadth of the universe.  We utilized every strategy we could think of to keep her off balanced, and even created some new ones on the spot.  We threw all our technology and the wisdom of the ages at her.  We even threw planets and moons.  Entire solar systems disappeared in that war.  The war raged for over 25 years before a plan was developed that could stop her.  Raven had suggested that, since the world crystal draws power from outside reality, there must be a rift the energy comes through.  And if there was a small opening, the opening could be enlarged enough to fit Aerie.  With that plan in mind we attacked once more and kept attacking.  This set her off balanced yet again.  Usually we had attacked for a few days and then regrouped, but we didn't, we kept attacking in a constant wave for nearly five months.  In the duration of that assault half our race was destroyed.  At the end of the fifth month Raven, working with Vegeta, had gathered enough energy to enlarge the rift fast enough to catch her off guard and trap her.  I led the assault with Warpath and Arganon to either side of me.  By that time the rage that rippled through me had been so great that in mid charge I evolved once more to what you see me as now.  This completely new and foreign form startled everyone, Aerie most of all, and that gave us the edge, and the opportunity, for Raven and Vegeta to rip the rift open.  Aerie had stiffened as a black hole appeared right from her center.  She, too late, realized what happened and lashed out with a massive, multi-purpose blast just before she was sucked in, taking Arganon and Warpath with her.  Her energy tentacles had lashed out at me, she wanted to take me with her but Arganon and Warpath would have none of that and were taken instead.  The blast ripped through the front ranks of our race killing even more of our people and mortally wounded me before the saiyans were able to stop it.  Raven and Vegeta were also caught in the blast but Raven saved Vegeta's life by standing between the blast and Vegeta.  On top of that the secondary purpose of the blast rippled through the entire race and genetically altered the genetic make-up of our reproductive juices and eggs.  From that day forward no saiyan born had yellow hair and teal eyes.  She had stripped the extra Y chromosome from the sperm and egg, the chromosome where all the attributes that make evolved saiyans what they are were located.  We returned to our home planet only to find it ruined.  The world crystal was all that had kept it alive and with that gone the planet had quickly died.  They couldn't stop my spirit from leaving my body because both were to weak from the battle.  So they decided to temporarily separate the two… which turned out to be a lot longer then originally anticipated.  My body was taken to the only place where it could be preserved indefinitely, which wasn't even in this universe.  Technology couldn't preserve it, but magic could, so it had to be taken to a universe, a reality, where magic existed, which is where we are headed.  Magic is also what encased my soul into that sphere.  There was a trigger that it could only be opened if Vegeta, or one of his descendents that are all ironically called Vegeta, touched it.  The sphere could be moved but the body had to be set in a special place, a place where magic was strong but it would be left undisturbed.  Like in a vault and the only way into the vault is through a locked door that required a key that was taken with the sphere.  After that was taken care of Vegeta rallied the remnants of our race and took them to a new world.  Our home world was uninhabitable due to the loss of the crystal they landed on a different planet and called it Planet Vegeta and the rest I don't know because I was locked inside a sphere."  Arthain finished, leaned back and chuckled at the collective reaction.

Bardock and Karie were both nearly floored by what they had heard and, although Gohan and Vegeta knew parts, they were nearly equally shocked.  Jaws were nearly touching the floor and it was several minutes before anyone was able to speak.

Arthain shook his head, "My my my, you'd think what I said was surprising.  Sheesh, a little history lesson and you people act as if the world ended…"  Arthain said teasingly which caused Vegeta to quickly pull his jaw up and recover his composure.

Vegeta cleared his throat, "Nothing like that Arthain, it was just a little bit… more then I expected.  There are a few holes in your story that I want… clarified."  Vegeta said and Arthain glanced at him and beckoned him to ask, "Who was the evolved female saiyan that was born?  And how did Aerie… oh.  I think I just answered my own question.  Aerie was that saiyan that was born evolved right?"  Vegeta asked.

Arthain nodded, "Yes that was her.  We always made fun of her, saying that she was actually suppose to be a guy because no other female saiyan was born evolved.  I still remember her face; she was always so cute when she pouted."  Arthain said and sadness was reflected in his eyes as he remembered back to the past, "We were all close to her…  We never did figure out why she tried to channel the energy of the crystal through her own body."

By this time the others had recovered their composures.  Vegeta thought again for a bit before asking another question, "Why did you say we 'were' the chosen, aren't we still now?"

Arthain shook his head, "No, we aren't.  The Cerians are now.  Why do you think they are nearly on par with the Saiyans and rapidly increasing in strength?  Soon the average Cerian will be stronger then the average Saiyan.  The energy flowing through the crystal, the energy from between realities, is what made us the chosen ones."  Arthain responded.

Vegeta nodded and was about to speak again but Gohan cut him off.  "Early when you first arrived you mention mutant saiyans.  What exactly are mutant saiyans and why are they so much stronger then regular saiyans, because if what you said was true Brolly is a mutant saiyan."  Gohan asked.

Arthain smiled, "Easily answered.  For most things in life there are exceptions, Brolly is an exception.  Most saiyans evolve in one direction, but sometimes one goes off in a different direction.  Mutant saiyans are actually weaker then normal saiyans over all." Everyone was about to protest that but Arthain just overrode them, "Brolly is weaker then you as well.  Sure he's strong and fast but it's much harder for him to evolve and on the side, he lacks in every other area aside from Strength and Speed.  Brolly lacks endurance, intelligence and a few other essential things that would make him great.  He lacks these because he is a mutant.  Those weaknesses were erased when Aerie took control of him, she provided him with unlimited endurance and acted as his brain and instinct, and since she existed during the time when the saiyan race was at its pinnacle…  Well you get the picture.  Any one of you, except Bardock, could defeat Brolly as he is, although it would take quite the effort on your part Karie, and a lot of luck.  Just out last his stamina and you will have him at your mercy.  And outlasting his stamina is easily done because he lacks the wits to conserve his energy."

Karie slammed her hand on the table, "Hey, don't talk down to him so much.  He's a great person!"  Karie exclaimed.

Gohan and Vegeta exchanged smirks and Bardock laughed out loud.  Arthain shrugged, "I wouldn't know.  I was talking about his fighting capability, not his social skills, or his bed skills.  I don't know him, and don't really want to.  I dislike mutant Saiyans, they always tend to think highly of themselves when they really aren't all that great."  Arthain said.

Karie glared at Arthain but quieted down.  Arthain looked around the table again, "Anymore questions?"  He asked.

"Since you lived back during that age you would know many techniques am I correct?"  Gohan asked curiously.  Arthain nodded and leaned back in his chair, or rather, leaned through it. "Well, do you suppose you could impart some of that knowledge on to us?"

Vegeta smiled inwardly, _that's Gohan for you, thinking like a true saiyan, always striving to improve himself_.  Arthain looked around and saw the expectant looks on their faces, "I suppose I could teach a few techniques, especially the one that combines two saiyans together for a time and more then triples their combined power."  Arthain said in a sort of off-hand way.

For second time the collective jaws of the people within the room dropped.  "Th-th-three times?"  Karie spluttered out.

Arthain looked at her with a sort of bored expression, "Ya, something like that, I may have underestimated it a bit, but you know, its hard to accurately tell in the middle of the battle and with so many people doing it."  Arthain said and looked around in mock surprise, "What?  You've never heard of or seen a fusion?  My my, you guys sure are lacking in the technique section."  He said sadly.

Vegeta cleared his throat, "Ah, alright I think that concludes this meeting.  I-Err... I think Gohan, Karie and Bardock need time to think over what you have told us.  I'll expect you to start teaching us some of these 'techniques' as soon as possible, especially the fusion one."  Vegeta declared.

With that everyone got up and left the room with the exception of Arthain.  He just stood up and grinned.  A light strange light appeared in his eyes as his grin twisted, s_oon… I almost…my grasp…she will...._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day and back on Planet Vegeta…

"Now listen up students, what I am about to tell you is important."  The military strategy instructor said, "To break and destroy an army, city, country or planet is not a sign of true excellence.  True excellence consists in breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting remember this.  A general who is able to win a war without shedding blood, or keeping the blood to a minimum is the sign of a truly great general."

Trunks turned to Goten, "This guy is so boring.  I don't care about this kind of stuff!"  Trunks complained.

The instructor glared up at Trunks, "TRUNKS!  Stop talking to you friend and answer this question, what is the best form of defense?"  The instructor demanded.

Trunks sighed, "The best defense is offense, as in when the enemy is about to attack you strike first, catching the enemy off guard." He responded in a mono-tone voice.

The instructor nodded, "Good, so your head isn't filled with moth balls, now sit down, shut up, and let me finish the lecture."  The instructor said as he continued on with the lesson, "Now, when making war impatience will make you lose the war, and more importantly, will probably mean you lose your head.  More then impatience though, not knowing when and where to fight will also mean the loss of your head.  If you outnumber the enemy 10 to 1, surround them, if you outnumber them 5 to 1, a straight head on assault will suffice.  If you outnumber them 2 to 1, have one half of the army attack head on while the second half do a diversionary tactic, like going around behind the enemy and catching them in a vice.  If you are equal in strength only engage if you have superior weapons and terrain advantage.  If your army is less, run.  Knowing when to run and when to fight is the sign of a great general."  The instructor was about to clear his throat and continue when the bell rang, an instant later the room was cleared as the students rushed from the room.

The instructor stood staring at the empty class room and shrugged.  "Oh well, I'm not here to make sure the shits understand what I'm saying, I just have to make sure that this bullshit is said."

Goten, Trunks and Vil'Tani quickly made it to the weapons training area with Cain close behind them.  Once they entered they found all the students, as well as the instructor, already there.  Apparently the excitement of the previous day still clung to the students and they couldn't wait for the second cluster of matches.

The instructor walked into the center of the mat and looked around, "Alright, I know you're excited about the matches so lets get them started, first we have Vil'Tani faced off against… let me see… you."  The instructor said as he pointed at the devolved saiyan that had pissed Vil'Tani off the day before.

Vil'Tani grinned as she picked her axe up and walked out onto the mat.  The devolved saiyan, upset at being treated the way he had the day before glared at Vil'Tani.  "You are so dead." He growled at her.

Vil'Tani just shrugged, "You can kill me if you touch me."  She said glibly.

The devolved saiyan grinned and charged at Vil'Tani whirling his flail above his head. Vil'Tani just stood where she was and watched as the lesser saiyan closed in on her rapidly.  As the devolved saiyan got within reach Vil'Tani used the flail as a shield, a shield against his eyes as she ducked and twisted around to the side.  She whipped her axe out and let its weight help propel her around quickly.  As she got around behind him she whirled around again and brought her axe around and slammed it against and into the back of the saiyan near the base of the spine.  There was a sickening thunk as her axe cut through the spinal code and double the body over.  The poor person flew forward and flopped boneless against the ground.  The instructor grinned and clapped his hand in appreciation, "The ghost counter, very nice, very nice.  I'll take him back to the regeneration chambers and see if we can save his pathetic life.  You've done very well; I can see you passing this course with flying colors.  Your attack could have easily killed him but you knew exactly where to hit and how much power to use.  I wish we had more students like you."  The instructor said as he dragged the young devolved saiyan into the back room and the regeneration chambers.

Vil'Tani walked back to sit beside Goten with a big smile on her face and the handle of her axe bouncing against her shoulder.  When she sat down she looked over at Goten, "And that, my dear, is how you teach loud mouths a lesson.  You should never bark unless you have the bite to back it up."  She said rather smugly.

The instructor by this time had returned.  "Alright for the next match lets have something we've all been waiting for.  Trunks, Goten, will you please step onto the mat?"  The Instructor asked.

Goten and Trunks glanced at one another and grinned before they stood and walked onto the mat.  Everyone within the room leaned forward to get a better view of the action, although aside from Vil'Tani not many of them had a chance of seeing any of the minute details.  The two split as they neared the center of the mat, walked a few meters to either side and turned to face each other.  Trunks crouched down and held his sword at an angle in front of him.

"Come on Goten, any time you're ready I am."  Trunks said.

Goten answered with his sword.  A whistling sound a split second before impact was all the warning Trunks had, and it was all he needed.  Broadsword met katana as Goten went for an overhead chop.  Trunks retaliated with blinding speed and began to chop at Goten from all directions.  Each blinding strike was met by a blindingly fast parry.  In most sword fights the sounds of swords clashing together are separated by a second or two.  In this fight it sound much more like a long single screech as the swords met each hundreds of times in the span of a single minute.  Not long after the swords started blurring and the long screeching sound began arms and legs joined the fray as Goten and Trunks kicked, punched, slashed and dashed around one another in a deadly dance of steel and flesh.

After several minutes of non-stop fight a mistake was made.  It wasn't much, a single slip, the tiniest over extension of the arm, but it was all that was needed.  Trunks took advantage of the over extension of Goten's sword arm and snapped his foot into the elbow joint breaking it.  Goten let out a single yelp of pain and stopped for a single instant which was the second, and final, mistake he made of the match.  Trunks quickly took advantage of the opening and buried his sword all the way through the thigh of Goten's right leg as he snapped his free hand into his friends face.  Goten's head snapped back from the force of the blow and stumbled away from Trunks.  As Goten stumbled away Trunks ripped his sword from the Goten's thigh making the gash even greater.

Vil'Tani seeing Goten hurt had to consciously reign in her emotions and anger remembering over and over that the two were friends and Trunks wouldn't seriously hurt Goten.  Trunks was true to that thought and stepped back, "Give up Goten.  We're evenly matched when you are unhurt; being like you are you would lose.  I really don't want to hurt you anymore, not with Vil'Tani over there eyeing my dangerously with a death grip on her axe.  She may be a lot slower then me but she makes that all up with a lot more skill and technique."  He said.

Goten looked over at Vil'Tani and nodded in agreement, "Alright, I lose…  Trunks beat me fair and square… but next time…"  Goten left it hanging.

Trunks grinned, "Next time we'll just have to see."  He said, happy that he didn't have to hurt Goten anymore.

Vil'Tani rushed over to Goten and brought his good arm around her shoulder.  He smiled thankfully at her; standing on his own two feet was rather painful for some reason.  Vil'Tani led him into the back room where the regeneration chambers were located.  Cain only shook his head as Trunks sat down beside him, the level of skill and speed displayed was overwhelming, he knew he had joined the elite group, but he hadn't realized just how elite until now.

The instructor in the mean time was smiling broadly, "Ahh, it's been a long time since I saw a fight of that caliber.  Vil'Tani's fight was nice but it was over to quickly to really get into it."  The instructor said.  "Now for the next set of fights…"  The rest of the class went on relatively boring.  The remaining students couldn't compare to the skill, speed and power shown in the first two fights.  At the end the Instructor gave some insight on how to improve ones skill, or at least he did to those that could still move.

The Instructor walked into the back room and nudged the body on the ground, "I knew I forgot to do something, oh well."  He picked up the folded body and tossed it into an incinerator.  The parents wouldn't mind, he was, after all, only one of many children.

To be continued…

Ok, I know that was a lousy place to end it but…  I don't care.  Anyways, the time jump happens between this chapter and the next.  I could have put it in but… it would make an already long chapter even longer.  I'm not quite sure how far I'll jump ahead, or how many times, in the next chapter.  I'll just have to wait and see.  There are 2 more school scenes that I wish to put in but I need alliances and friendships to cement first before I put them in.  Just to let you know, I REALLY hate skipping ahead so far but…  I have to.  I don't have the ability, time or motivation, to fill every day in the story with stuff, or even something every week or month, so I'm going to insert something every half year or so.  That'll still give me at least 5 more chapters before the end few chapters, and that's only if I don't happen to make the events really detailed and long and involving more the one chapter.  So expect between 7 and 12 more chapters before the epilogue.  As the time draws closer and closer to the big event five years in the future of my story I'll might shorten the jumps as more and more stuff start happening.  Especially since I plan on having the journey Vegeta, Arthain, Gohan and Karie have in the other reality to be really in depth.  I have a lot of plans for that place.

Anyways, my midterms are over finally… well I have one more but oh well, I just finished like 5 so I should have some more time for this for a little bit.

Anyways, hope you enjoyed the chapter.  I LOVED writing the saiyan history, and no, Arthain isn't an evil super villain in disguise, alright?  You'll just have to wait and see :).


	17. Chapter 16: The End of a Beginning

Alright…  I plan on doing part of this next section slightly different then before, sort of like a preview.  Going to do an overview of what happens during the trip, but with little bits here and there within it detailing specific events and stuff.  Also doing it this way allows me to skip the '6 months' or '12 months later…' type deal.

I thought I should mention this here… although it probably shoulda been said a lot earlier.  You know how I made Vil'Tani's power level at 950,000?  That may seem high right?  Well it's not, not for her race.  She's in the upper range but there are many stronger then her.  The strongest of her race can safely draw enough power from the crystal to have a power level equivalent to 3,000,000 in the saiyan charts.

Oh, if you can guess Arthain's age, body age before he was split apart, I'll give you a medal or something.  I haven't given any clues to it but give a guess…  Ok forget it you won't have any idea.  He's actually about 672 years old and he was young.  Massive amounts of life force plus the life extension granted by the world crystal made him near immortal.  The crystal enhances the age of the creatures it empowers by a power of 1.5.  So a human would live to be 1,000 years old if they would normally live to be 100 which means a saiyan would live much longer.

Another thing, I'll probably post power levels just before the final battle or around that time.  I don't see any reason posting them afterwards because the story is finished then and no one cares anymore or at least I wouldn't care if I was reading the story.

Ok, I made a BIG mistake, which I have now fixed.  I had Bardock in two places at once.  I need him on the ship more then back home so I got Landyn as the Administrator of the academy.  Sorry for ruining your Omake Dany but…  I kinda really need Bardock on the ship.  I need him to go super and well that's that.  Sorry for the people that got confused when reading this.

**Chapter 16: The End of a Beginning**

As per Vegeta's instructions Arthain commenced training and teaching of old techniques to Gohan, Karie, Vegeta and Bardock.  Bardock wasn't able to do many of them himself due to the lack of energy required to power it… in the beginning.  The days past by in a regular patterns, the four woke up at 6:00 am, training in separate gravity chambers until lunch at noon, had their meal, went to the training area where they were taught techniques until supper which was at 6:00 pm and then train in the gravity chambers until they went to bed.  The first day after the history lesson they didn't train that hard thinking the techniques easy to learn.

Arthain looked at the saiyans in disgust, "I looked in upon your training this morning… What kind of bullshit are you doing?  You call that training?  You're all barely tired.  You just did what you could and didn't bother pushing your limits!  You only truly gain strength and endurance when you work BEYOND your natural levels."  Arthain snarled out.

Vegeta got really upset at this, "WHAT!  How DARE you talk to me like that!  You're here to teach us the techniques you know and that's it, not to give us 'pointers' on how we should or shouldn't train our bodies."  Vegeta growled back.

Arthain glared at him, "Do you honestly think you are able to learn my techniques at the pathetic levels you are at now?  Let me remind you that the 'normal' saiyans in my time were as strong as Gohan is at his maximum in his 'evolved' level.  The techniques I'm about to teach you are meant for people with that kind of ability and strength.  If 'lesser' people tried to use them they could very well tire themselves out or even die before they summon up enough energy to make them work. I was ALSO planning on teaching you techniques that not even the normal saiyans of my time could use because they were to weak, the ones where they had to fuse to use." Arthain snarled at Vegeta.

The four looked at Arthain in surprise, "Are you telling me I'm not strong enough to use some of your techniques?"  Gohan asked in incredulity.

Arthain just gave him a very pointed look and the message wasn't lost on any of them.

That day Arthain refused to teach them anything and they, astonishingly considering Vegeta was one of them, didn't argue.  They just went back to their gravity chambers and trained until they dropped and then went on training afterwards on their hands and knees.  By the next day they had fully learned their lesson and from that day forward they never arrived at the training session in any condition less then dead tired, or sometimes, wounded.

Arthain kept his word about teaching his techniques to the saiyans and his pupils soon learned that his techniques were anything but easy.

"You said you wanted to know how to fuse right?"  Arthain asked but went on not waiting for an answer, he already knew it after all, "Well, first you must understand there are multiple ways of fusing, four in total.  There are two permanent, and two non permanent although one of them could be if the two fused people wished it so.  The permanent ones I'm not going to teach because one requires earrings, a pair of earrings of the immortals, which no one has because I highly doubt the immortals, would lend them to anyone for any reason.  It's not known how much stronger the person gets with these earrings when they fuse.  No one I know has ever seen them other then on anyone other then the gods and they are tight lipped about that.  The other permanent fusion is so pathetic I really don't want to talk about it.  Of the other two one requires a stupid little dance and only lasts 30 minutes, the dance makes you look like an ass, you only increase your power half as much as the strongest person and lasts for such a short time its not really of any use.  The one I am about to teach you lasts until one or the other inside the fusion wish to be released so it could last anywhere from 10 seconds to a life time.  This is the fusion the saiyan race used in the war against Aerie.  What you do is you place your hands together, fingers and palm all aligned perfectly straight and together, or together as you can make it because of the difference in finger length and hand size.  Then you adjust everything to be exactly as the other person.  This means you must reduce or increase you life force to match the others as well as breathing in sync and thinking in sync.  Everything must be equal and then you both think of the body you want to be in and use your energy to try to place yourself within it.  If it works right you'll both be in the same body, if it doesn't work, nothing will happen.  To break out of the fusion just think of your old body and think of yourself flowing into and it will break the fusion." Arthain said and gauged their reactions.

"You expect us to be able to do this?"  Vegeta demanded.

"No, actually I don't, because this was usually used between bond mates or very close friends.  Trunks and Goten could probably do it, once they form their own little bond.  Gohan could do it with his mate, and you could fuse with yours.  There has been the odd instances where two people were able to fuse when they didn't have any of those connections, but both were extremely skilled at reading people and were experts, better then even me, at ki manipulation."  Arthain said.

Vegeta grumbled to himself, "I'm teaching this to you not so you can use it on our journey; you probably won't need it, it's suppose to help you when you square off against Aerie and…" Arthain trails off.

Only Gohan wondered what he was going to add, the other three were thinking to hard on the fusion technique.

"Don't worry, I'll teach you others in the mean time.  You can practice it if you wish but I'll reveal a few more techniques for you to work upon if you get frustrated and give up on it… which will more then likely happen."  Arthain said he was about to teach them when something occurred to him, "Oh Gohan…  Your mate will have a surprise for you when you come home…"

Gohan's eyes bugged out of his head, "Y-You don't mean…" He stammered.

Arthain grinned, "I sensed it within her as we left.  I like being aware of everything around me.  She'll have an extremely long pregnancy… well long compared to your standards, but… heh...  You'll have to wait to get home for any more information."  Arthain said.

Once Gohan had recovered he found he had yet another reason to become stronger and his will to become stronger increased just that much more. 

The training of the techniques continued from there with Arthain teaching one or two at a time.  Over the duration of the trip to the saiyan old home world he only taught four techniques all together, but no more was really needed, because none of them had mastered all four by the time they had arrived.  Gohan had learnt three of them but struggled with the fourth, he couldn't summon up enough energy to use it, not even at his maximum, and this only fuelled his gravity training in the morning and night.

Karie trained just as strong but was only able to master the first technique, not being strong enough for the other three although she came close to using the second.  Although she had nearly doubled her internal energy since her fight with Brolly she still had couldn't quite come close enough to use it.

Vegeta, with his determination, mastered the first two techniques before anyone else but couldn't use the third or fourth for the same reason as Karie.  He, like Karie, could feel that he was on the verge of being able to use the third technique properly since he was getting small results and this fuelled his resolve to become stronger making his training in the gravity chambers more intense then anyone.  He pushed his endurance and physical strength far past their normal boundaries in his effort to use the technique, and in the back of his mind, reach the next level so he could beat Gohan.

Bardock had the most trouble out of any of them.  He couldn't use any of the techniques, let alone master them. He trained almost as hard as Vegeta, but more in frustration than determination.  He surprised everyone when, six months after launch, he walked into the technique training session with yellow hair and teal eyes.

"You had better believe it!"  was all he said as he walked to join them.

Arthain didn't show any emotions on the outside but on the inside he was grinning, _It seems the saiyan race may once again become what it once was, lets hope they don't make the same mistakes… __if they survive._

From that point on Bardock, with renewed hope at evolving, quickly sought to catch up with the others, although since he transformed out of necessity, as in his body couldn't hold any more energy in its devolved state, rather then rage he was close behind Karie in strength instead of ahead.  With his increase in strength he quickly learned the first technique and started working on the second.  Karie and Bardock quickly found that if they combined their energy together they could produce a satisfying result with the technique so worked in that direction.

Nearly a year after the ship had left the planet their training session with Arthain was cut off short when the intercom clicked on.  "I'm sorry for disturbing you Sire but you wanted to know when we reached our destination and…"  The communications officer trailed off.

Vegeta grinned, "Don't worry; I won't blast you for interrupting my training.  I'll be there in a second, just hold steady where we are now or I will kill you.  Arthain said he had to personally direct this part of the journey or we'd never find the planet."  Vegeta replied, _argh__, I hate depending on someone else thought Vegeta._

A sigh of relief was audibly heard over the intercom forcing everyone inside the room, aside from Vegeta, stifle a laugh.  Vegeta glared at them, to no affect, before he left the room.  Arthain and the rest left right after, all of them wanting to see the planet for themselves.

As they appeared on the bridge Arthain immediately went to the sensor controls and started directing the saiyan there on what to do.  By now everyone had gotten use to the ethereal form of Arthain and treated him as if he was flesh and blood, which meant they still revered him as a god due to the fact that he would outclass Gohan by far if he had his body.  The nervous yet happy saiyan obeyed Arthain to the letter and ten minutes later a display screen popped up and replaced the existing one.  They were the same except this one had one slight difference.  There were bunches of arrows and numbers showing where they should go, the speed they should be moving and how much time they had to get through the entire thing. The thing was a giant cloud of nebulous gas that, unless sensors were configured properly, concealed everything within, and behind it.

Arthain looked up at Vegeta, "That's the best I could do with the primitive technology you have here, you had better go now or the opening in the cloud will shift to somewhere else and by the time we find it… well we won't have to worry about that if we go now."  Arthain said.

Vegeta nodded, "Alright men, this is it, time to see our true home world.  I want you to obey Arthain's every order relating to the manoeuvring of this ship through the nebula."  Vegeta said.

The crew nodded and began to work furiously as Arthain began to give orders.  The ship was soon underway again and this time there was no stopping it, not until it reached the old saiyan home world.  Vegeta sat back and his seat and kept his eyes fixed upon his monitor.  He was determined that he was going to be the first to see the home of his ancestors.

Arthain, after giving his initial commands, turned to Gohan.  "Gohan, does Pan do any sort of intensive training?"  Arthain asked curiously, "She seemed to be… a lot stronger then most devolved saiyans and she was only 3 when we left…" He trailed off.

Gohan looked at him curiously, "Yes, she has…  Is there something wrong with that?  She seems to enjoy training with me and Videl in the gravity chamber."  Gohan responded.

Arthain frowned thoughtfully, "Depends… Depends…  You see children aren't meant to do intensive training… not until their body has grown enough naturally to handle it…"  Arthain said.

Gohan began to look worried, "I think I can see where this is going…" He started to say but was cut off.

"No, you don't.  You see, if your daughter has been training intensively and growing at the same time one of two things can happen…  One is your daughter's physical structure can screw up, as in her bones will not grow properly… hell, she'd stop growing entirely because her body is to focused on healing itself and recovering from the training to concentrate on her growth.  That means she'll be a child forever."  Gohan's eyes widened in horror and tried to contact his mate but realized he was to far away.  He could still sense her moods vaguely but telepathic contact was impossible.  "Or your daughter's body will under go a change that will make her a mutant saiyan.  Most mutant saiyans are born that way… but a few have developed into one due to extreme circumstances.  No one has ever let their child train, and in fact most children don't like training intensively.  They'd rather be playing then training.  How exactly she'll change is unknown.  There is a slight chance nothing will come of it but… you'd better hope for the best."  When Arthain finished Gohan was staring at him in shock.  For the first time since leaving on the journey he wanted to go home.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A week earlier back upon Planet Vegeta…

Goten turned back from the cliff that he had been gazing off from and towards a group of people that stood hidden below.  With a sigh Goten trotted back towards the group.  As he neared a person detached themselves from the mass of people.

Vil'Tani smiled at him as she reached him and wrapped her arms around him. "Hey, what did you see?"  She asked as she caressed her hand across his back.

Goten gave a half hearted smile back at her, he tolerated her actions because he knew what she was going through but he really wasn't in the mood for it this day.  Although he had been told almost a year earlier by Landyn that this would happen he just wished she would give it a rest for today.  Goten looked up from her face and addressed the crowd, "The coast is clear, we can proceed now.  I can't see, or sense, anyone between here and the city of Spire.  We're almost to our goal so let's stay low and stay fast, got it?"  Goten said in an weary voice.

The group was conducting a field exercise in military strategy.  They were supposed to make it to their goal while at the same time avoiding all contact with the 'enemy.'  The enemy were other groups comprised of upper year students.  All the lower year students tried to get to the goal while the upper year students tried to prevent them.  So far most of the lower year groups had been captured and, aside from Goten's, only one other group was still out there.  That group was headed by Trunks.  Many of the people in Goten's group he didn't recognize.  Aside from Vil'Tani, the only other two people he knew well were Varitech and Cain.  Riho and Arsenic had gone with Trunks.

The devolved saiyan standing beside Varitech glared at Goten, "Why do we have to take orders from you?  You're just newly come to your 'elite' status.  I should be leading this expedition, not you.  My family has been elites since the ancient days."  The lesser saiyan spat out, "I can't believe YOU were assigned to take charge, our Instructor must be insane or something.  What makes you any different then us?  Look at you, what the hell is wrong with you today?  You're intolerable most days but this week… I can't stand this…  I should be the leader; you've led a sheltered life, I on the other hand, have gone through much more then you and have the scars to prove it!" He was about to prove it when all of a sudden Goten held him by the throat and lifted him into the air.

Vil'Tani had also noticed Goten being down all day and wondered why.  It never really occurred to her until that moment.  It was that week, exactly one year after he nearly died, a year after he had to watch his mother torn apart; the same week where he had to watch his brother genocide an entire race.  Vil'Tani suddenly felt horrible for not noticing sooner and for acting as if nothing was wrong.

Goten glared at the offending person as his face twisted into rage. "Sheltered?!  SHELTERED?!"  Goten roared in the poor devolved saiyans face, "LET ME TELL YOU WHAT KIND OF SHELTERED LIFE I HAVE LIVED!"  Goten threw the suffocating devolved saiyan to the ground and proceeded to glare down at him. "At the age of 7 I DIED!  I was torn apart by the rebel saiyans that attacked our planet while YOU stayed nice and safe within your underground bunker!  I FOUGHT for this planet that day, and I DIED for the planet.  Do you know what's on the other side?  OF COURSE NOT!  Beauty exists there beyond ANYTHING you can possibly imagine!  But that heaven was torn from me as well, just as my life was, when my brother brought me back!  I would have killed myself immediately if it weren't for two things!  My big brother and my new goal to become the strongest! To EVOLVE!  I now have another reason not to die, and if THAT'S not apparent then you shouldn't even be here and I'll kill you myself right now!"  Goten said in a chilling voice.  The lesser saiyan on the ground was now visibly shaking in fear, and no one blamed him one bit, he expected to be annihilated any moment if he made the wrong move or said the wrong thing and he was right. "If THAT wasn't enough I had to go through something even worse just a year ago!  Have you ever seen your mother killed?  Sure you've seen her beaten, but have you seen her TORN APART IN FRONT OF YOUR VERY OWN FUCKING EYES!  NO!  SHELTERED UPBRINGING MY FUCKING ASS!  I HAD TO WATCH AS BROLLY RIPPED HER INSIDES OUT AND THROW THEM ALL OVER THE GROUND WHILE LAUGHING THE ENTIRE TIME!  If that's not enough for you, how about this!  That was also when I evolved beyond you pathetic shits!  But despite all that power, despite enough power to scorch entire planets, I was mauled and beaten into the ground!  My entire torso was mangled almost beyond repair with every bone in it shattered and every organ torn apart!  Oh but that's not all, you want to know what?  I had to participate in GENOCIDE!  Oh killing the odd person here and there in self defence doesn't bother me but…  I HAD A HELPING HAND IN KILLING AN ENTIRE SPECIES AND DESTROYING A PLANET!  DO YOU KNOW HOW THAT FEELS!? TO KNOW THAT YOU ARE PART OF THE REASON WHY SEVERAL BILLION BEINGS WERE KILLED!  Do you have any idea what it feels like… to feel the life force of several billion creatures wink out in an INSTANT!?  Sheltered life my fucking ass!  When you can claim to go through even HALF of what I have, THEN you can come speak to me about a harsh life!"  Goten finished, the last bit coming out in a hiss.  

By this time everyone had backed away from him, partly due to the fact that they didn't want to be involved in the incident and partly because they couldn't due to the fact that Goten had flared out his entire life force and his aura was billowing out around him.  The very ground itself was trembling slightly which unnerved many considering they were on solid rock.

It was during the speech that Vil'Tani truly understood why the genocide upset him so much.  It wasn't simply because his brother had committed it, he knew the reason, it was simply because he felt as if he had had a direct hand in the destruction.  Vil'Tani made a vow to herself to keep her urges reigned in completely during this week in the future.

Goten glared lifted his glare from the poor devolved saiyan and looked around, "Now, if anyone ELSE has a problem with my lead…"  Everyone was quick to nod in confirmation.  Cain had never seen him like this and Varitech was now afraid of what would happen if he ever found out.  Despite that fear a new plan began to grow in his mind.

"I for one support Goten, he hasn't let us down yet."  Varitech said as he stepped forward.  Vil'Tani gave him a grateful smile and turned her attention back to Goten.

Goten nodded, "Alright, now that that is all settled, let's get the fuck out of here.  Because of you…" Goten glared down at the guy still on the ground and no one tried to tell him it was his own fault, "Everyone on this side of the planet probably knows where we are now.  We had best be going, it's going to be extremely hard to keep out of the older students reach, but I have a few plans in case this kind of thing happened."  Goten said as he left, "Remember, stay low, and stay fast."  He commanded, every inch a general, as he sped away.  Everyone followed him, no one dared to speak out against him.  He had them all within his grasp, his own miniature army… all but one.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1 week later…

Goten and Vil'Tani walked into Vegeta's study, or now as it's called while Vegeta is gone, Trunks' study.

"Goten, we have a problem." Trunks said before Goten had even sat down.

Goten raised his eyebrow, "Hmm?  And you need my help why?"  Goten asked teasingly as he and Vil'Tani took their seats.  The events of the previous week had gone into hiding as did the horrible memories of the past once the week had gone by.  They were still there, just buried for another place, another time. 

Trunks glared at him in mock anger, "Goten, I don't NEED your help, I just want it.  I have my people out already, and I'm hoping to get yours out as well."  Trunks said.

Vil'Tani spoke up at this point, "And just what do you want us to do?"  She asked.  There was no separating the two, what one knew the other learned soon after.

Trunks looked around like there were spies hiding everywhere and slid a piece of paper across the table to Goten and Vil'Tani. 

Goten picked it up and read it and his eyes widen a bit before they narrowed.  "I see."  He said.

"Do you have any idea how this information got out?"  Trunks asked.

Goten nodded, "I have an idea, and I think I know who spoke up about it.  One of my own men I do believe.  He'll be useful to keep around though, to feed false information."  Goten said.

Trunks nodded, "Alright, now that we know the 'who' and the 'how'.  What we need to do is stop it.  We can't have this getting out of hand, if it did I may hand back to my father a split empire." Trunks said.

Goten and Vil'Tani exchanged glances, "Way to many people know and are speaking out about it to do what Vegeta did and have some 'disappearances.'"  Goten said, "So this is what I have in mind, it's just in its rough stages but it's a good starting considering I just thought of it."  Goten said.

Trunks nodded and leaned forward as did Vil'Tani."

Goten smirked, "Well as I see it…"

----------------------------------------

Inside a small cottage in the woods south of the Capital…

Videl walked out of the gravity chamber with a satisfied look on her face.

"That was a good training session wasn't it Pan?"  Videl asked her daughter.

"Ya" A now 4 year old Pan said wearily from her perch on top of her mother's yellow hair.  "We must be strong for when daddy comes home!  Then I'll show him how strong I am!" Pan cried out, suddenly getting a renewed burst of energy.

Videl smiled at her daughter, "I take it you're ready for more training?"  Videl asked and Pan just answered by running back into the gravity chamber.

Videl smiled just smiled as she wrapped her arms around her large abdomen, _I feel like I've been left behind by you Gohan…  I don't want to feel that way…  I'll make you proud.  When you come back I, no we, swear we won't be your lesser… but your equal… She thought to herself as she followed Pan back into the gravity chamber._

To be continued….

Heh, yup, Videl has evolved and is strong, stronger then Bardock and Karie and as for Pan… well that'll be kept a secret until Gohan gets back, no point in ruining it by letting hints drop now, who knows… she may have even evolve by the time Gohan gets back, but in what way? Hehe, a lot can happen in 4 years time.  Think about this, Karie, Gohan, Vegeta and Bardock will stop their intensive training for 3 years as they journey in the other reality and only start up their intense training on their way back.  Videl and Pan though…  They have 4 more, 5 in total, years to do hardcore training, and what about the unborn child?  OOOooo…  Ah, I'm gonna shut up now :). 

The next chapter will begin the journey to the other reality and from here on out the main focus will be on Gohan, Vegeta, Karie, Bardock and Arthain.

Yes, the chapter was rather short in comparison to my other ones but if you think about it many of the ones I've been pumping out lately were very long.  I consider a 3,000 word chapter a good sized length and I've been nearly doubling that lately.  Anyways hope you liked the chapter :).


	18. Chapter 17: A New World? A Different Re...

Just to let you know this new world is going to be like a Dungeons and Dragons world.  Magic, Mayhem, Monsters and Many Races… wow that's a lot of M's.  Anyways it's gonna be like that so there will be challenges for the saiyans.  Magic and ki have never really clashed that I know of so I can make any comparison I feel like :).  Of course basic little cantrips won't do jack to the saiyans but the more powerful spells like Comet and Demon fire will have an effect not to mention rune magic.  Remember my disclaimer?  Unless I create it I have no claim to it, rune magic was created by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman in their Deathgate Cycle, that's where I'm getting that magic from, or more specifically, the Patryn type of rune magic.  I'm changing it a little, like the reason behind it working, not using the wave possibility theory, but it's pretty much the same thing.

Oh, just in case you are wondering…  Normal saiyans can't breathe in space but they can travel in space.  They generally have enough energy to travel anywhere within the solar system they are currently in with ease.  However they lack the energy to make it across the space between solar systems.  This is because they can't do it fast enough with the little air that exists within the bubble they create around themselves.  To be able to travel across solar systems you need to be evolved to Gohan's stage to travel between solar systems.  If one should make it to Arthain's level they'd have enough energy to go anywhere within their quadrant which means they really don't need star ships.  There is also a technique to recycle the existing air but Arthain didn't bother to teach it for a very specific reason.  Just so you all know.  I'm going to have some space battles in the future and I don't want to have to type out the reason they're able to 'breathe' in space.

Oh, one thing, I was wondering where I was going to come up with stuff to fill in and then realized I don't have to.  My story has probably just been shortened a couple of chapters but don't worry, all that would have been in those chapters is filler and who really cares about filler.  I can't really introduce to many new things at this point.  I should be wrapping stuff up.  I hate authors that introduce new things near the end, new things that have a major impact on the story at least anyways.  Small little new things are ok :).

Anyways, in response to Dany's post…  Well the crystal was absorbed by Aerie, as in became a part of her.  You could say there are two crystals now…  Well actually no, there's 1 crystal but there's 2 rifts leading to the same place, kinda, the space between realities; one inside Aerie which she is drawing energy from, and the one inside the world crystal on Cerian Prime.  The universe NEEDS a crystal to keep it moving, it's a living entity after all right?  By the way I'm saying all this here and not in my story because well, no one in my story knows or will ever know so having it explained in there is kind of stupid, plus it doesn't ruin anything by saying it here :).  The crystal is like its heart, if it's removed, it has to get a new one or… *CLASSIFIED*.  The only thing is that it takes a tremendous amount of energy to replace the heart and it takes time for the universe to recover from each recreation of its heart.  She, the universe, had millions of years to recover after the first heart was made.  She's only had about 5,000 years since the second one was made.  She hasn't fully recovered which means… *CLASSIFIED* Should THIS crystal be destroyed… *CLASSIFIED*

Anyways, in response to your opinions…  I'll only say that one thing *CLASSIFIED* :).  Hehe I looked over it again, what I had wrote, and the stuff that's classified will be explained in the story, not through words, but actions and reactions that take place.  Just wait and see :).  It's really going to be unique, so bear that in mind.

Hmmm… I just decided.  I decided to chop the chapters down even more… but not the content amount.  I'm going to make BIG chapters, VERY big chapters, like 7k words or more type chapters.  If you don't like that well HA! :) hehe.

**Chapter 17: A ****New World****? A Different Reality**

****

Vegeta let out a slow sigh of relief as they finally eased out of the nebula.  After several nerve wracking hours and close calls they had finally made it through.  Vegeta quickly glued his eyes to the display screen wanting to get the first look at the planet.  What he saw surprised him greatly.  Although it was all ruined it was easy to see that the planet had once been spectacular.  Multiple abandoned star bases circled around the planet acting like miniature moons, and moons then could be considered because they were so immense.  Aside from the star bases many other structures could be seen floating in space, many of which became active and turned towards the star ship.

Blue lights started flashing throughout the ship as it went to blue alert.  One of the crew looked up at Vegeta in horror, "My liege, the… the floating debris as set their sights on us, and they are completely active.  They keep sending a message over and over as they power up their weapons…  The energy output my liege, it's… incredible.  It's going off the charts.  Our ship won't be able to survive more then a couple of blasts at most and there are hundreds of those defence turrets aimed at us!"  The saiyan said in a panic.

Vegeta looked sharply at Arthain and he simply lifted his hand, "Don't worry, I'll handle this."  He said calmly and walked over to the communication officer.

"Patch a channel through to them.  Send it on the same frequency that they are sending out their messages.  I know what they want."  He said.

The saiyan didn't wait for Vegeta's command, he didn't want to die.  He quickly typed a few things on the keyboard in front of him and touched the screen in front of him.  "Alright, go ahead."  He said in a hurry.

Arthain nodded and approached the microphone and spoke into it in a deep voice and in a language they could barely understand. "This is Arthain Thyranix, Commander of Planetary Defence and Foreign Minister.  The code is Final-Chosen-X754."

The next few moments were tense and silent but everyone breathed a sigh of relief as the return message came through, "Name, Rank and Code authorization accepted, welcome home Final Chosen."

Vegeta looked at Arthain steadily, "Final Chosen?  What the hell does that mean?"  Vegeta demanded.

Arthain turned to look at Vegeta, "It means I'm the last saiyan alive that is still considered a chosen one by the universe."  He replied.

Vegeta became even more confused, "And how does that work?  You're not even fully here."  He replied confused.

"Let me ask you a question Vegeta…  What color was my sphere?  I mean before your touch activated it."  Arthain asked.

Gohan gasped, "Cyan…"  He said in a barely audible voice but it carried across the entire bridge.

Arthain looked at Gohan and a cyan glow began to emanate from his eyes the same color that emanated from the pendant around Brolly's neck and the eyes of the Zyians. Vegeta, Gohan, Karie and Bardock quickly got into battle positions seriously confusing the rest of the crew.

"What is the meaning of this Arthain?"  Vegeta demanded, "Who are you really, and why the fuck are your eyes glowing the same color as that blasted pendant?  I swear if you don't have a good answer you can kiss getting your body back good bye."  Vegeta hissed as he slowly powered up and was echoed by the other three.

Arthain sighed, "Calm yourself you stupid idiot.  Think about this for a minute, do you honestly think I'd have revealed my secrets like this to you before I had my body back if there wasn't a good reason?"  Arthain inquired.

Vegeta grumbled but stopped powering up.  Arthain was right, only a fool would say and do something like that when they hadn't even achieved their initial goal.

Arthain sighed again, "When Aerie absorbed the crystal she tore away the crystals power from everyone in our race, with one exception.  I've told you before that there are always exceptions.  I'm an exception.  I'm still a chosen because I am still receiving the energy from the crystal.  It's one of the reasons why I was able to split my body and spirit with relatively little difficulty."  Arthain explained.  "I was always at the front line of the fight, but I was never actually fighting.  I was the one providing the support and protection for everyone.  The front line was the best place for me to be because Aerie couldn't directly harm me in any fashion…just like I couldn't harm her directly."

Gohan's eyes widened as something dawned upon him, "You… and her… are mates?"  He gasped in astonishment.

Arthain looked at him with such sorrow and sadness that it didn't need to be said, "I wasn't entirely truthful when telling the history.  I was mortally wounded when she was sucked into the black hole… but not because of her directly.  The emotional and mental wounds were the greatest of my injuries that day… but as you all can attest, those wounds are the ones that hurt the most and do the most damage.  I always kept hope, right up until the last moment, that we would be able to save her.  When she was taken away that hope was crushed…  The emotions that rippled through me were to overwhelming to control, to contain. The emotions manifested themselves into pure energy and burst from my body.  I overloaded you could say.  Anyways, a bond isn't a physical thing, it's a spiritual construct.  Why do you think you have to bite the person to form it?  Because you must touch the soul and the soul is further then skin deep.  So even though I don't have my body, our bond is still as strong as it would if I still had my body.  Normally I wouldn't be able to feel her, like back then, but there is a hole in reality now that she is coming through, so I can feel her once more, and she can feel me.  Which also means the power of the crystal, or rather the power that flowed into the crystal flows into me through the bond we share, that is why my eyes are glowing cyan.  I, unlike everyone else who fell under her control, completely realize just who and what she is so she has no way of controlling me.  I also know of several techniques to use to block her if she ever tries.  She knows I know those techniques, she made one of them herself; she won't bother trying to turn me."  Arthain said as he finished his story.

Gohan scratched his head and looked up at Vegeta, "Well, that explains a lot."  Gohan said.

Vegeta sighed and grumbled to himself, "I hate these kinds of surprises, and I get the feeling there are many more in store for me."  Vegeta said wearily and turned to glare at Arthain, "If you have anymore secrets you haven't revealed, I suggest you do so now, I dislike these surprises as I just said."

Arthain snarled at him, "Everyone has their secrets, do you demand to know all of Gohan's secrets?  Or Bardock's?  What makes me any different?  I tell you enough so you won't be killed or do anything stupid.  I don't need to tell you every single step I took through my 700 year life or all my thoughts and plans for the future."  Arthain bit out.

Vegeta was about to snarl back when Bardock touched his arm.  Vegeta whipped his head around to him, "WHAT!?"

Bardock was unfazed by the glare, "He has a point you know.  Just leave him be, he's been pretty compliant so far.  So what if he left out a minor detail of his life?  It's obvious that it was painful for him to say."  Bardock said.

Vegeta visibly strained to calm himself. "Fine, bring the ship into low orbit; we're going down to the planet.  I want to get home as soon as possible.  And signal for a landing party to meet me at the hangar bay."  Vegeta snarled out and left his chair.

"Don't forget the plate and key!"  Arthain called after Vegeta as he headed towards the hangar.

Arthain sent a thankful look towards Bardock who just shrugged his shoulders and response.  The four left the bridge and followed Vegeta to the hangar bay.

By the time Vegeta and company reached the hangar the landing party had already assembled.  When word had reached them that they were entering the nebula around the planet they figured they might be called upon so took it into their own hands to get ready.  Vegeta just nodded in satisfaction, glad that something is going his way for once.  He beckoned for the soldiers to enter the drop ship and proceed to the planets surface.

The squad leader saluted Vegeta and hustled his men into the ship.  Soon the compartment decompressed and the air within rushed out as the doors opened.  The normal saiyans all erected shields around them and followed the shuttle out as it made its way towards the planet.  The journey seemed to take forever, and no one truly realized why until they broke through the atmosphere.  The planet was huge.  It dwarfed the massive gas giants that existed in various solar systems throughout the quadrant.  The planet itself could have easily passed for a star due to its huge size.

As soon as the drop ship landed the back doors opened and the saiyan landing party rushed out to secure the surrounding area, although there was nothing that needed to be secured from.  Although the planet was huge, it was dead.  Vegeta settled down beside the squad leader and began to issue orders.

"I want this area secured when I get back.  I have no idea when that will be.  It could be anywhere from a few days to several years.  Either way I plan on being back before 3 years are up.  If I'm not back in 4, leave without me because I won't be coming back.  Should I not come back I want you to take this star ship and get the hell out of here, out of the quadrant.  Get as far away as you can from planet Vegeta and this quadrant.  The star ship has enough supplies for 10 easily so just radio back if you need more.  Once you have this area secured I want you to call down several more drop ships and start exploring the place.  We may be able to salvage something, anything."  Vegeta said.

The squad leader nodded and turned to his men, "Alright you shits, I want everything within a square kilometre completely secured with defensive shields set in place and radar tracking activated.  Get moving, Go! Go! GO!"  He yelled as he began his job.

Vegeta nodded in satisfaction, his mood significantly improved due to things finally starting to go his way.  For some reason just walking upon the ancestral home of the saiyan race had improved his mood tremendously.

He turned to address Arthain and the others, "Well, we had better start now.  Arthain, you should lead because you know this planet better then anyone dead or alive."  Vegeta commanded.

Arthain just snickered and took to the air.  The others followed quickly and soon realized that Arthain was going incredibly fast.  Gohan didn't have much trouble staying up with him but Bardock and Karie had to pour every ounce of their life force into speed just to stay within sight distance of the legendary saiyan.  The journey seemed to take forever, not that they had any doubt it wouldn't feel that way.  With the enormity of the planet they were glad of the break neck speed Arthain as headed at.  As it was it still took a long time to reach their destination.

As Gohan looked at the devastated landscape and ruined cities he couldn't help but notice something odd.  It was something so confusing yet simple that he couldn't figure it out. After what seemed like hours Arthain dipped low and flew into the ruins of a city and it was then that Gohan realized what was odd.

"There are no shadows!"  He exclaimed in surprise.

Arthain looked back and grinned, "Just figured that out now eh?"  He yelled over the roar of the wind, a roar the stopped as he reached the center of the city.

The others stopped behind him and quickly followed his lead as he landed.  They were in the very center of the city which meant that the four major roads of the city converged upon this one spot.  The place was huge and a massive fountain stood in the center of the circle where water once flowed.  The road itself was completely in disrepair but when all things are considered it was in good repair.  The stones were made out of the finest quality and it didn't require an expert to tell anyone that.  A stone that is able to withstand thousands of years and not be weathered down is good quality.  Massive buildings towered over them but they were strange in design and shape.  They appeared to twist and turn as the spiralled, literally, upwards into the sky.  No matter how hard the four saiyans looked they couldn't find a single edge to any of the buildings, excluding the very top and bottom of the buildings.

Arthain smirked, "Welcome to my home city, I not only used to live here but I was born and raised and ran this place.  The reason you don't have a shadow is well…  Don't bother trying to understand it.  We faced an enemy in the past, something so long ago I don't even know it aside from legends.  We fought a race over this planet.  The race thrived upon shadows and could control any amount of darkness.  So to counter it my ancestors simply… removed all traces of shadows from the planet.  Needless to say the enemy lost the war soon after and we had supreme dominance over this planet."  Arthain explained, "I don't know how they did it, so don't bother asking."

Gohan nodded and began to look the place over.  Arthain on the other hand knew what he was looking for, "Vegeta, you have the plate and key right?"  He asked.

Vegeta nodded his head in affirmation but kept glancing around trying to take in all the sights at once.

"Well could you bring it over here?  We might as well start this journey now eh?"  Arthain said.

Vegeta looked over at Arthain before he looked to what Arthain was looking at.  There was a circular indentation in the center middle saucer of the fountain.  Vegeta floated up to it and placed the plate into its place on the fountain.  The plate glowed brightly before it disappeared, along with the entire fountain.  In its place stood a large portal big enough to easily allow several saiyans to enter at a time.  Size spinning crystals floated around it supply the energy to the gateway, keeping the rift between realities stable.

When the portal opened everyone turned and joined the two in front of it, "How long will it stay open?"  Karie asked curiously.

Arthain looked over at Karie, "Long enough for us to get through.  Once through the plate will follow us.  We just have to insert it from the other side and it'll open once more."  Arthain responded.

Karie nodded and looked around, "Well… Let's do this."  She said and stepped through the portal.  Bardock and Vegeta were quick to follow not wanting to be left behind.  Gohan entered the portal afterwards but just as he went through the gate, he turned around and could have sworn he saw an eerie grin creasing Arthain's face.  A second later he was all the way through and was quickly joined by Arthain.  Like Arthain said, not moments later the plate followed them through and the portal closed.

The party found themselves in a clearing in the middle of a huge forest.  A massive pillar of rock towered above them going for at least a kilometre.  Engraved in the stone was a circular hole big enough to fit the plate.  Vegeta nodded to himself, satisfied that he could still get home.  Karie pocketed the plate and looked around.

"What know?"  Bardock asked, "This place feels… different."

Arthain looked over at Bardock, "Of course it does.  It's COMPLETELY different from our reality.  There is no technology in this world, hell if there were the gods would maul the people that tried to develop it.  When the saiyan race first found this reality the gods fought us.  The war raged for awhile with no victor so we decided to call it a draw.  We agreed to no introduce technology into this universe and in exchange we were free to explore this reality as we choose."  Arthain said.

Bardock nodded, "Just how many gods are there?"  Karie asked.

Arthain thought about that for a moment, "Oh… Quite a few I suppose.  There is a good for everything: fertility, animals, land, rage, war, death, murder, everything.  I'd guess there are several hundred, maybe a thousand.  We never bothered counting.  We were concentrating more on beating them and when it came to the treaty and afterwards we never saw more then 5 gods at any one place or time so it was impossible to count."  Arthain answered.

Karie gaped in surprise, "A thousand gods?"  She asked in perplexity, "How did that happen?"

Arthain looked at Karie, "Quite easily, noticed how the air, how reality, feels different here?  It pretty much means that it's easier to become a god.  We have no real gods in our world.  The ones we consider gods are beings that are so powerful their life force allows them to live forever.  Here the gods simply will themselves into existence.  What you are feeling is the ether, a band of energy that runs through everything.  Some creatures can dip into it while others live in it.  It's rather unique actually and if we hadn't had troubles of our own we probably would have studied it intensively."  Arthain said.

Another thought occurred to Arthain suddenly as he noticed the others dawdling, "I thought I should mention this little fact.  One thing we did learn was that this reality…  Well time flows slower here then in our reality.  Meaning that we have a year to find my body and get back.  Otherwise we won't have enough time to get back to Planet Vegeta in time to do the final preparations."  Arthain said casually causing the other four to whirl around in surprise.

"I though we had three years here!"  Vegeta demanded.

"Oops."

Vegeta stomped away grumbling to himself for a moment before he turned back to the others, "Alright people, let's get going, NOW!  We don't have time to spend sitting her with our thumbs up our asses."  Vegeta growled and proceeded to launch himself into the air.  Once in the air Vegeta realized something else and floated back down to the ground, "Alright Arthain, where do we go now?"  He demanded.

Arthain smiled, "This place will have changed over the past several thousand years, despite it flowing slower here then our world a lot of time will have still passed, and the gods here enjoy changing the landscape.  They wouldn't have dared to change my tomb but its location… that's another matter.  And to find it we need to get in contact with the gods, and to do that we'll probably have to do some stupid pathetic little quests for the insignificant creatures here."  Arthain said with a sniff of distain.

Vegeta nodded, "Well no time like the present, let's go." He said as he took off only to stop again.  He looked down at Arthain, "Hey hurry up, we have to follow you!"  Vegeta yelled.

Arthain shook his head in amusement, "It seems some traits breed true no matter the number of generations."  Arthain whispered to himself quietly, so quiet that only Gohan caught it gaining a little smile out of him.

The four rose into the sky to join Vegeta above the tree line.  Arthain looked around in all directions and spots several spires reaching into the sky a long ways to the south.  Arthain turned to the others and saw that they noticed the city as well, "We might as well head in that direction.  Who knows what city it is but it's probably the best place to start."  Arthain said and the others nodded.  Four sonic booms sounded as the saiyans blasted through the air towards the city.

The forest didn't notice their passing, nor did the animals, but someone did.  The girl stood up, drew some runes in the air and disappeared.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

An hour later…

Gohan sighed in exasperation.  The cause of his annoyance was a group of floating people arrayed in front the party.  Vegeta stood at the forefront with his arms cross in front of him and a scowl on his face.  Bardock and Karie stood to either side with Arthain behind him.  Gohan currently floated behind Arthain keeping an eye on his surroundings as well as the people in front of Vegeta.

"Who are you people!?"  Vegeta demanded in his usual arrogant manor. "I have business in that city!"

Arthain sighed, "You know Vegeta, going around acting like that is a real good way for them to greet you… with spells, swords and more then likely summonsing."  Arthain said helplessly.

Vegeta glared at Arthain and was about to speak but stopped as the center figure spoke up, "The ethereal one speaks wisdom my friend, it would be wise to listen to him."

Vegeta whirled around and glared at the elderly male grumbling all the while.  "I think it should be us who demand who you are and what you are doing here."  The elder said.  "This is our city, our land, and you are strangers.  Are we simply supposed to allow strangers into our city without first learning their intentions?"

Vegeta sighed, finally admitted that perhaps they were right, "Alright, to keep thing short we need to talk to a god, have you seen one?"  Vegeta asked semi-politely.

Arthain burst out laughed causing Vegeta's head to whip around, "You're not helping the situation you know."  Vegeta snarled.

Arthain's laughter died down, "Oh it's nothing, it's just you're starting to sound like me, sarcastic like."  Arthain said, still chuckling a little.

Vegeta glared at him for a moment before he turned his attention back to the people in front of him.  Once the elder had Vegeta's attention he spoke up, "Not just anyone can speak to the gods you know.  You must pass a series of…"

"… Tests yes I fucking know.  Look I don't want to be here a long time.  I have a lot of stuff to do back on my home world.  I just need to find this guys body but knowing what little I do of your gods they probably decide to hide it for shits and giggles or something.  So if you could be so kind as to guide me in the direction of the nearest god?"  Vegeta said in annoyance.

The elder crossed his arms.  "Look, I don't know who you think you are but NO one demands to see the gods."  The elder said as his tone started to heat up.

"Now look here old man!"  Vegeta started but was smashed backwards as an intricate rune blazed into life and smashed into his chest.  Vegeta's eyes start to glow as did his entire body, "That was a serious mistake you pathetic insignificant worm!"  Vegeta snarled as he began to power up.

The air around him erupted into a huge aura of yellow light as he started to gather his life force within his right arm.  He was about to release it when Gohan's hand clamped onto his arm and began to squeeze it painfully.

"Calm down Vegeta, this will not do anything aside from guaranteeing them not helping us.  That will only make our work here that much longer and harder!  I want to get home to my mate and children.  I do not want to be stuck in the god infested reality, got it?"  Gohan growled.

Arthain nodded in agreement, "Yes, if we don't do it their way the only other way to speak to the gods is to use the doorways, and to do that we have to force our way through.  I'm sure you can kill one or two gods but there are nearly a thousand in total, they'll simply overwhelm you." Arthain spoke up, siding with Gohan.

The elders exchanged looks that conveyed the same thoughts, _they have power to challenge the very gods themselves and even win?  I doubt that!_

Vegeta glared at Gohan for a moment and seriously thought about lashing out and then realized he would be humiliated when Gohan beat him into the ground.  "Fine, have it your way."  Vegeta said and powered down.  He turned his gaze upon the rune users, "Fine, I accept, I'll do your stupid tests.  The sooner we start, the sooner we get this shit over with."  Vegeta said.

The elder had been tempted to say no but after seeing the raw power that had emanated from the person in front of him and that he had stopped so easily when the other told him to.  He didn't want to see what they were truly capable of.  He had a feeling it would put his rune magic to the test; he didn't doubt he could survive, but he didn't want to chance it.  It was a test he wasn't quite willing to try at the moment.

The elder nodded, "Alright, now that we have that out of the way, I think we should introduce ourselves.  I'm the leader of this city, Gahlanthas.  The people behind me are Dakkon, Elan, Blaze and Tixx.  We are the rune lords of Vihn, and this is the capital city."  He said.  The people behind Gahlanthas nodded their heads as their names were called out.

Vegeta looked over his shoulder then back at Gahlanthas, "I'm Vegeta, King of the Saiyan race and the leader of the alliance that rules over several thousand races and even more solar systems and planets.  To my right is my chief of staff, Bardock.  He basically takes care of much of the nitty gritty shit that goes along with any travel plans I make.  To my left is Karie, a bodyguard you could say.  The ethereal person you see is Arthain; we're trying to get his body back.  Behind him is Gohan, my foreign minister and advisor."  Vegeta said.

Gahlanthas nodded and brushed his hair back showing pointed ears, "Alright, if you can keep a reign on your temper we'll offer our hospitality.  You'll have a greeting fitting of a king, I'll take your word for it, but remember, even though you are a king, NO one here is under your rule so you have no say over anyone aside those that came with you."  The elderly elf said.

Nothing more needed to be said at the time so the elders flew off and towards the city with the saiyans in tow.  The city itself was magnificent, in its own way.  Large walls, although not as thick as the ones around Vegeta, surrounded the city; unlike the wall that surrounded Vegeta this one had many towers along its length.  Several large gates were located at seemingly random intervals along the length of the wall.  A road ran from each gate, gates that were currently jammed with people entering and leaving the city.  The elders didn't bother using the gates and just flew right over the walls with the saiyans close behind, or in Vegeta's case, beside the elders.

The city looked extremely delicate to the untrained eyes, or mind, but none of the saiyans were untrained.  They could sense life force and with a slight modification of that skill they were able to decipher ether levels and see the runes that were invisible to the normal person.  The city was comprised of many spires and towers reaching high into the sky with arching bridges connecting various towers together.  Every building had been constructed out of marble and twisted into magnificent shapes that dazzled the eye.  Something caught Vegeta's eye and caused him to grumble to himself.  Over the center of the city floated several buildings.  Much like the royal palace back on Vegeta the royal palace here floated in the air above the city.  The only difference is that on Vegeta technology was used to keep it floating, here it was magic.  Runes crisscrossed across the breadth of the underside of the palace.  Runes didn't just reside under the palace, they resided everywhere.  To Vegeta and company the entire city was full of runes.  They had the feeling that it would have been very messy if they had tried to force their way into the city.  In fact many runes weren't stationary and went flying around the city as they protected it from both unfriendly forces and the elements of nature.

The palace was their destination, and although it floated like Vegeta's, it was completely different in structure.  For one thing it was just a single structure floating in the air but multiple structures with multiple levels.  The buildings themselves weren't stationary, they slowly moved in a seemingly random pattern.  It seemed as if they reacted to stimuli within the air and moved towards the elders as they approached the main building.  The main building had a huge dome in the center with several hallways jutting from the sides.  Small spires rose up from the top of the main building, one on each corner and one at every 90 degrees of the central dome.   There were five hallways in total, two for either side and one from the back and each ended at a huge tower that spiralled into the air much like the buildings back on the ancient saiyan home world.

The extended group landed in front of two huge double doors.  The doors were situated at the front of the palace to serve as the main entrance.  The elder, Gahlanthas, simply walked forward and as neared to within a foot of the door the runes on it flashed brightly and the doors swung open.  The rest of the elders entered after Gahlanthas with the saiyans just behind them.  The inside of the palace was much different then Vegeta's.  Vegeta's was barren and utilitarian in style.  This one was design for beauty.  Marble columns lined the main hall while expensive wall hangings hung on either side of the hall.  The floor was made of marble slabs, with streams of silver and gold running through them, and fit together so tightly the lines between almost disappeared.  Balls of light flittered here and there lighting up whatever need to be lighted.  The balls, and much of the palace interior, were covered in runes.

Various people walked calmly and nonchalantly through the room.  They had their duties but they weren't in any hurry to get them finished because there was no hurry in finishing them.  There hadn't been a major incident since the saiyans had arrived thousands of years before so they felt secure in their superiority.  The lesser races of the world left them alone because, although they were envious, could do nothing to affect them.  Anyone of them had the power to devastate an entire army.  Arthain paid particularly close attention to the runes that surrounded everything.  No one, aside from one person, noticed because he made it looked as if he was indifferent to his surroundings.

A teenage girl suddenly ran out and hugged Gahlanthas, "Grandpa, you're back!  I was so worried about you!"  She said happily.  The girl was about 16 years of age and quite beautiful.  She looked like everyone else but Arthain caught something no one else did, something that apparently not even the girls 'grandfather' had noticed.  There were extremely faint runes inside the girl's eyes.  He frowned at her for a moment but quickly stopped as she looked over at him.

"Who are these people?"  She asked quickly.

Gahlanthas looked back at the saiyans and then to his granddaughter, "They're saiyans my dear.  They're apparently come here to speak with the gods about finding the spirits body."  He answered.

The girl frowned, "You're going to do it?"  She asked in confusion.

The elder leaned down and whispered to the girl, "Don't worry, the tasks I'm going to give them they won't be able to complete.  They say they're able to kill gods but I highly doubt that.  They'll either give up or die during my quests so don't worry your pretty little head."  He said softly.  The saiyans heard every word but didn't show it, they weren't about to let the elves know that they had superior hearing.

The girl smiled happily, "Oh, I see, ok that's ok then."  She said and turned to address the saiyans, "Nice to meet you, I'm Alihvan, granddaughter of the greatest man on this planet, Gahlanthas!"  She stated proudly, "Welcome to the capital of Vihn."

The saiyans nodded their heads and Vegeta stepped forward imperiously, "I'm Vegeta, and the people behind me are Gohan, Karie, Bardock and the spirit is Arthain."  Vegeta said, not noticing the slight frown on her face at the mention of Arthain. "If you want to know anymore, ask your 'great' grandfather.  I don't feel like saying it again."

Alihvan smiled and turned to her grandfather with a little hop, "Grandpa, I'm going to head out ok?"  She stated more then asked.

Gahlanthas smiled down at her, "Sure thing, just be back for supper, alright?"  He said.

She beamed at Gahlanthas and nodded her head really quickly before she bolted out the way she had entered.

Gahlanthas turned to the saiyans after watching her leave, "She's a strange one, but I love her nonetheless.  Her mother died at child birth and her father couldn't bear to live without his wife so he soon followed."  He said, "I've been taking care of her ever since.  She's always full of energy and pulling endless pranks on us.  We act angry and upset but the spice she brings to all our lives are a welcome relief from all the work we are forced to do so we don't mind to much."  He finished and turned to face the far end of the hallway, "Now if you'll follow me, I'll take you to the council chambers where we can decide what tasks to give you."  He said and started off.

The group walked along behind the elders and took many twists and turns within the hallway system before the finally reached the door leading to the council chambers.  Inside the room were two tables.  Each table faced the other with a long flat edge while the other side, of both tables, consisted of 5 even length edges creating a weird, but symmetrical, 6 sided table.     

The elders took their place at the far table with Gahlanthas sitting at the head.  The saiyans took their cue and sat at the other table with Vegeta at that head and the others seated the same way they were on the star ship.

Gahlanthas sat back in his chair and clear his throat as he prepared to speak, "Alright, before we agree to help you we need to know exactly why you wish to speak with the gods.  You've already said you needed to get Arthain's body back, but we wish to know the why behind that."

"Because I'm their best hope of beating a creature of infinite energy back in our… home world."  Arthain said, "I'm much stronger then their most powerful warrior, but only if I get my body back."

Gahlanthas raised his eyebrow, "A creature of infinite energy?  I'll give you the benefit of the doubt although I highly doubt its 'infinite' energy or you would not have any chance against it."  Gahlanthas cleared his throat again. "Alright, you wish to speak with the immortals?  Well it's not a simple process in we need certain… materials as well as the time to prepare for the communication.  It's hard to get their attention."  Gahlanthas explained.  "To that end we need to attract their attention with items worthy of their attention.  The first item we need is a special item.  It's called the Sword of the Avenger.  It's a broadsword that is said to be able to cut through anything and was given to a pathetic human to fight invaders several millennium ago."  Arthain almost choked out laughing at that statement causing Gahlanthas to glare at him, "Is there a problem with what I said?"  He inquired.

Arthain just shook his head, "Oh no, I'm just wondering what kind of attention it will attract…  Steal a sword they made and gave to humans?"  Arthain asked and shook his head in amusement, although that wasn't what he found so funny.

Gahlanthas glared at him, "Nevertheless, we wish to have that item because it would be the perfect to draw the attention of the gods.  We just need it to get their attention and it's perfect for that.  You need to get other items to pacify them, to show them your intentions aren't harmful."  He said, "We'll tell you what else you will need to get after w-you have the sword.  The sword may be found in the human stronghold of Khaz'Hila.  It'll be virtually impossible to storm due 95% of it being hidden under a mountain…"  He broke off as he saw the wide grins creasing the faces of the saiyans, "It doesn't matter how strong you are, you won't be able to break through a mountain."  Gahlanthas frowned when the saiyans kept on grinning; he finally let it pass and traced several runes in the air.  A globe appeared between the tables that began to slowly revolve. "Alright, you can go bang your heads against the mountain if you want but it won't accomplish anything.  The city is here," A red dot appeared on the globe, "And we are here."  A blue dot appeared on the globe, "Retrieve the sword any way you can…tomorrow.  It's nearly dinner time and it would be rude if you didn't attend."  He said, "You do not want to be out at night, there are creatures on the prowl that even I dare not face."  He said in explanation.

Vegeta nodded, "Alright we'll accept but one thing.  You've seem rather… eager to help us.  Inviting us into your home, feeding us, giving us all the information we require…  I'm a ruler as well and I know we don't do things without a reason.  What do you get out of all this?"  Vegeta asked suspiciously.

"I figured you would ask this, and you are right, we aren't doing this for free.  The items you are collecting are to draw the immortals attention and alter their mood upon arrival…  But do you REALLY think gods need those items?  Not really, they'll leave them here when they leave and the items you will collect are items we want but haven't the time, or ability, to get."  Gahlanthas explained.

Vegeta smirked, "Ah, yes, greed is always a good motivation."  Vegeta said causing Gahlanthas to flush and anger.  Tixx rose and was about to yell at Vegeta when Gahlanthas held a hand out and bid him to sit.

Vegeta stood and looked at his companions, "I think we'll need to wash and get ready for dinner.  The appropriate clothing will be provided I assume?" Vegeta inquired.  Gahlanthas nodded in agreement.  "Good."  Vegeta said and turned to leave.

Gahlanthas traced several runes in the air.  The runes, four in total, sped forward to hover just in front of each corporeal saiyan.  "These runes will guide you to your rooms."  Gahlanthas explained.  Vegeta nodded yet again and was about to leave when he remembered something.

"Oh, you might want to have your cooks make extra.  I tend to eat 10 helpings of everything, and my companions are the same."  Vegeta said.

The elders eyes widened in surprise, "You have got to…"

Vegeta shook his head, "You could make the normal and disregard what I say but don't expect your food to remain on your plate for long."  Vegeta said and quickly left before the elves could respond.  The other saiyans left soon after as they followed their own rune.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

An hour later…

Gohan walked into the dining room and it was huge.  Tables were situated all over the room in a symmetrical pattern and nearly all of them were filled with people.  The one that was located halfway between the main table and the far end of the dining hall.  Gohan walked over to that table and sat down to the right of a grumbling Vegeta.

"Look where they put us, I may not be an expert on how they sort rank but we should AT LEAST be at the main table with the other elders!"  Vegeta complained from his position at the head of the saiyan table.

Gohan shrugged, "We are strangers in their land; even being invited to dine with them is to be considered special I suppose.  Just be glad we are not at the table furthest from them."  Gohan tried to comfort.

Vegeta snarled, "If they had placed us down there I'd have killed the entire damn lot for the insult."  He said.

Arthain smirked, "Which is exactly why they placed you here.  They aren't stupid you know.  They didn't put you anywhere where you had a right to complain or initiate violence but far enough from the main table to cause insult."  Arthain said.

Vegeta glared at the back of Gahlanthas' head as he conversed with the person sitting next to him, which just so happened to be his granddaughter Alihvan.  Alihvan got up and glided towards the saiyans sitting at their table.

As she reached the table she gave a small curtsy, "I'm sorry about being so rude earlier. I didn't have any clue as to why you were here.  I simply assumed you were here to take advantage of us."  She said apologetically.

Gohan smiled at her, "Do not worry.  The last thing we are here to do is to take advantage of you.  I just want to get home to my mate and child.  I have another one on the way and I will miss his/her birth as it is, I do not want to miss much more."  Gohan said.

Alihvan smiled back at him, "Hopefully this won't take long then, for both our sakes."  She said.

"Do you have any idea what the other items we are supposed to gather might be?" Vegeta asked.

Alihvan just gave him a little smile and said, "Now now, don't be trying to get information out of me simply because I am Gahlanthas' granddaughter.  Just wait patiently and you'll find out."  She said.

Vegeta sighed, "Wily old man."  Vegeta grumbled.

Gohan looked over at Vegeta, "Hey, Vegeta, do you want me to handle this on my own?  It should not be hard.  I could probably get it without levelling the mountain and hurting anyone inside."

Vegeta thought about it for a moment before replying, "Sure why not, saves me from doing the menial task of retrieving the sword.  Me, a king, being some one else's fetch dog, how insulting…"  Vegeta trailed off into mutterings.

Alihvan gave Gohan a brilliant smile.  Only one person knew the true meaning behind the smile.  Alihvan nodded her head, "Well, I should get back to my grandpa, I just came over to apologize for my earlier behaviour."  She said, curtsying again as she walked back to take her seat beside Gahlanthas.

The usual dinner conversation ensued from that point on.  Nothing really remarkable happened, aside from the incident when the food arrived.  The waiters barely had time to set the plates down before the saiyans tore into it like they hadn't eaten in over a week.  The food disappeared faster then the waiters could re-supply it.  The elders decided at that point that making the extra food had been a good decision after all, even if it appeared as if they were obeying a foreign monarch.

After dinner the saiyans gathered in the lounge near their rooms and talked for several hours before they headed to bed.  Gohan wanted to go to bed early so he could be rested for the next day.  With Gohan gone the conversation died rapidly because most of it had been centered on his job.  Little did they know that the next day would be the beginning of something that would change the face of that world, forever.

To be continued…        

For the palace in the story…  Think of the Taj'Mahal, the big dome in the center.  It's a bit different, as in the dome isn't as tall and it's more oval.  Also the building that the dome is situated on is wider and longer in the story then the Taj'Mahal, as in the dome is centralized, but it doesn't take up the entire top part of the building.

AHA MY LONGEST CHAPTER! BOOYA!  Enjoy the chapter, hehe.

Also, I've decided exactly when I'll post the power levels.  I'll post them when Vegeta and company get back to planet Vegeta.


	19. Chapter 18: Challenges

Alright, I was going to post this chapter later but I got the next one finished so what the hell, here you go.  Expect the next chapter within a week or so.

I just realized something about saiyans.  I checked out Bardock special, the early DBZ episodes and the later ones and came to a conclusion.  Saiyans can eat how ever much or little they want and still are fine.  I think saiyans just love to eat and when ever it's possible they eat as much as fast as possible.  But if food is scarce or they do not want to be rude they can eat the same amount as a human or less.  In the Bardock special and the early DBZ no one ate a lot of food.  In the early one's you notice Chichi only making 2 pots of food, 1 of rice and 1 of soup, at least I think it's soup.  Anyways, 2 pots, and that's to feed Goku, Gohan, Chichi, Ox King, and Krillen (This is just after Raditz gets killed).  Yet at the world martial arts tournament before Buu where food is abundant the 3 saiyans eat so much Krillen compares them to bottomless pits.  So I've come to the conclusion they can eat as much or little as they want and totally depends on circumstance.

Oh, 1 thing.  Gohan may be fast enough to travel between solar systems in a relatively short amount of time but he can not duplicate that speed inside an atmosphere.  Those of you that know physics already know why, for the others…  There is something called gravity and air resistance and Coriolus force, although the later only affects him when on his way to the place, on the way back that force is working with him.  Those have a major impact on slowing him down.  Also there is the little tidbit that if he goes to fast he wouldn't be able to take any bearings on his position and won't know when he should turn or slow down or even stop.

To explain the meaning of the chapter title in 17…  The world they arrived on IS the saiyan home world… I should I say both worlds were created the exact same way and are the same size and position in each universe.  The world is the same as the one they left… but it's completely different because it's a different reality and it evolved in a far different manner then the one in original reality.  It does have a world crystal but it's impossible to even get near considering it's under constant watch by at least several hundred gods.  Not that it would do the saiyans any good if they did get near it.  Taking the world crystal across to their reality through the dimensional door rips a gigantic irreparable rift between both realties that will eventually grow to encompass both effectively destroying everyone and everything in both realities.  So… it's not really a good idea to take it heh.

GAH!  This chapter was FAR longer then I had anticipated... FAR FAR longer… Like holy shit it well whoops any other chapter size I've yet done up.  Well I hope you all don't mind having a chapter over 10k words.

**Chapter 18: Challenges**

Gohan woke up bright and early the next morning, before any of the others, and started his preparations.  He had calculated that it would take half the day to get to his destination; maybe less if the terrain permitted it.  He didn't want to blast over cities at break neck speeds.  The shockwave would devastate them and he really did not want kill anyone on this quest.  After a breakfast that consisted of just one helping of food, much to the relief of the cooks, Gohan left the palace by the front entrance.

He gazed down at the city from above, fully taking in the sights.  They had passed over it rather quickly the day before so he didn't have much time to admire the view.  The city was quite beautiful and Gohan wouldn't have minded admitting it to anyone.  All the cities he had ever visited had been built for strictly utilitarian needs.  This city appeared to have been formed to please the eye.  Gohan smiled to himself as he lost himself in the view and the peace.  The peace that permeated the air was much different then back home.  At home there was always a sense of violence in some form or another in the air.  Here there was no sense of violence, just pure peace.

"Enjoying the view?"  A feminine voice startled Gohan from behind.

Gohan whirled around to see Alihvan standing behind him with her hands behind her back.  "Yes, as a matter of fact I was."  Gohan said, "Also the air…  It is so… peaceful.  There has been so much violence where I come from that the very ground is saturated with it.  It is a shame that there is not a single planet in my reality that has air quite like this."

Alihvan smiled kind of sadly, "Yes, it is quite peaceful here; it is why I like to visit this city…"  She said.  Gohan gave her a strange look but didn't say anything. "Oh by the way, I'm going to go with you.  You interest me."  She said.

Gohan smiled slightly, "I knew there was some reason for this meeting.  Why do you wish to come with me?  Surely it is not just because I 'interest' you."

Alihvan smiled slightly, "I have… business there so I'm heading in that direction.  I thought we could keep each other company on the way.  I also have knowledge of the land which you do not."  She replied

Gohan raised an eyebrow at her, "Oh?  And I suppose your grandpa is ok with this?"

Alihvan nodded, "He doesn't know and I don't think he would mind if he did.  He knows I can take care of myself.  He'll just think I'm on a camping trip.  I've done it before."

"Gone on a camping trip or gone away for an extended period of time?"  Gohan inquired.

Alihvan just smiled and said nothing.

Gohan shook his head in amusement, "Well, I do not see the problem with you tagging along but I was planning on getting there today so I will be to traveling at a high speeds.  Do you think you can keep up?"  He asked.

Alihvan smiled again, "I think I can, yes.  I don't think you'll be able to fly the entire way there though.  The humans have a… barrier at the edge of their lands.  It prevents anyone or anything from flying, even birds."  She said.

Gohan raised an eyebrow, "And why exactly do they have this barrier?"  He asked curiously.

Alihvan shrugged, "I don't know.  Their gods created the barrier.  Very few humans had the ability to fly with magic but the majority of their enemies could.  I suppose it's a defensive mechanism."  She responded with a little shrug.

Gohan nodded but frowned slightly, it made sense that the humans would have that barrier, but how did Alihvan know that very few humans had the ability to fly when the barrier prevented any of them from even attempting.

"Just how does the barrier prevent creatures from flying and how long has it been up?"  Gohan asked.                                  

Alihvan was about to respond but quite obviously changed what she was going to say, "I don't know.  I just know what my grandpa told me, I haven't tried it out flying.  As for how long…"  She paused, "Years I suppose, I'm not certain on the exact year." She finished giving Gohan the feeling that she was hiding something.

"Anyways, you said you wanted to get there soon right?"  Alihvan said innocently, "Let's get going!"  She said and jumped off the platform.  As she fell she initiated her rune magic and soon was blasting across the city.  Gohan smirked, _so, she wants to have a race eh?_

A sonic boom resounded from the place Gohan used to be.  All the people saw was a golden blur flash across the sky at several times the speed of sound.  The runes that floated throughout the city positioned themselves around the shockwave to prevent it from damaging any property or hurting any people.  Within seconds Gohan was outside the city and rapidly approaching Alihvan.  

The young girl looked back and saw Gohan catching up really fast and started to speed up.  Runes flashed across her body and erupted in the air around her.  Suddenly a circular wall of runes appeared in front of the girl and, as she encountered it, her speed tripled.  Gohan smirked and flew even faster and soon the two were side by side.  The air around crackled with energy creating a devastating shockwave in their passing.  The only good thing about flying was due to their height nothing that grew up from the ground was affected by their passing.

Gohan looked down and noticed they were flying over a forest, a very large forest.  The two of them were traveling at an incredibly fast speed

Several more runes flashed in front of Alihvan and suddenly a voice appeared in Gohan's head.  _This is a nice race; I enjoy a challenge from time to time.  At this speed we'll reach the barrier within an hour's time.  It'll be really noticeable.  If everything in front of you appears hazy and blurry, you've reached the shield.  I wouldn't try to fly to far into it or you'll find out exactly how it stops people from flying._

Gohan nodded and the two continued on in silence.  As Alihvan predicted it didn't take them much more then an hour to reach the barrier.  It was there that her description of the barrier became apparent.  Everything beyond was blurry, like looking through water while waves were rippling across the surface.

Gohan looked over at Alihvan and met her eyes.  As one they descended to ground level.  They were on at the edge of a wide open plain.  Behind them was a massive forest which they had flow over.  Gohan breathed in deeply and walked through the barrier.  Once through he noticed nothing felt different.  There weren't any limiters on how much of his life force he could bring to bear and that reassured him greatly.  Alihvan soon joined him on the other side.

"The road is that way."  She said as she pointed to the southwest.

Gohan nodded, and started bolted off in that direction.  He may not be able to fly, but that didn't mean he wasn't going to go as fast as possible.  Alihvan soon caught up employing the same techniques that she had used to increase her air speed.  With their speed greatly reduced in relation to their air speed the journey was going to take several days instead of just one.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Several hours later…

Vegeta floated high in the air above the city as he gazed south in the direction Gohan had gone earlier that morning.  He was wondering why his life force was moving away at such a slow pace and hoped Gohan had a good reason for it.

Vegeta sighed and was about to head inside when a shockwave sounded from outside the city.  Vegeta whirled around to witness Karie and Bardock beating on each other.  Vegeta's face lit up, he hadn't had a decent spar in a long time and a two on one was just what he was looking for.

Two yellow balls of glowing energy formed in Vegeta's hands and with a yell he launched them at the two fighting saiyans.  Karie and Bardock noticed the balls of energy just and time and managed to evade them.  The energy flew out and slammed into the forest outside the city cause two moderate sized explosions.  The explosions shook the ground startling everyone in the city into awareness.

Bardock and Karie glared up at the smirking prince who currently had his arms folded across his chest in satisfaction.  Bardock and Karie exchanged glances and suddenly they were in Vegeta's face punching and kicking.

Karie threw a left punch at Vegeta's face and was rewarded by having her arm smacked away as Vegeta ducked and moved to the side to block a kick from Bardock.  Karie followed up by swinging her leg around and under Bardock's in an attempt to reach Vegeta.  Vegeta snapped his hand down, grabbed Bardock's leg, and twirled around it as her leg swept under Bardock's.  Bardock fired an energy blast at the twirling Vegeta who just kept going around.  As Vegeta came up around he planted both of his feet into Bardock's face causing his head to snap backwards and his body to tumble away as he momentarily lost control of his energy.

Karie took advantage of Vegeta's move and slammed her fist into the top of his head sending him tumbling away as well.  Vegeta righted himself far more quickly then Bardock and had rewarded Karie with a knee in the stomach by the time Bardock came to.  Suddenly Bardock appeared beside Vegeta and planted his elbow into the King's cheek.  Vegeta was sent flying away and was met by an elbow from Karie as she used her instant transmission technique to get behind him.

Vegeta rocked forward and kicked out with his feet and grinned as they met solid flesh.  A grunt was all the reward he got for his efforts but he didn't worry about it.  He was merely using her as a springboard, and a good springboard she made as Bardock unfortunately found out.  He had less then an instant to take stock of what was happening before Vegeta's foot connected with his head yet again.  Bardock shook his head to clear his vision and snarled at a grinning Vegeta and abandoned all style.  Suddenly Vegeta found himself dodging a very frustrated Bardock throwing all his life force into enhancing the speed and strength of his punches.  A second later Karie was right beside Bardock doing the same thing.

By this time a crowd had started to appear.  Those that could fly were in the sky watching in horror and amazement at the speed, strength and brutality of the fight that was going on between the three.  They honestly believed they had gone insane and were trying to kill each other.  Arthain sighed from his position beside Gahlanthas.

"I wish they'd get their warm up finished and start actually trying."  Arthain complained.

Gahlanthas snapped his head towards Arthain, "Warm-up?  For what?  They're trying to kill each other, and they have to be at their maximum!"  Gahlanthas said as he desperately tried to come to grips with the speed that was being displayed.

A massive shockwave rippled outwards from the fighting followed by several more and finally a long massive stream of shockwaves.  Vegeta had finally finished dodging them and had started to meet fist with fist, foot with foot, and knee with knee.  Arthain smiled, "Ahh, they're getting close to finishing.  I've wanted to see their full potential after the training session on the star ship.  And despite what you wish they are FAR from their maximum.  They're just warming up for their little spar.  They're bored and saiyans fight for entertainment."  Arthain explained to Gahlanthas.

Gahlanthas frowned and drew upon his own power.  He had no intention on joining the fight but feeling the power of the runes flow through him gave him a comforting feeling.  Suddenly a thought occurred to him and a smile creased his face.  He no longer feared the power of these 'saiyans'.  Arthain caught the change in the elder and smiled internally.

A sudden explosion signalled the end of the warm-up as Vegeta arched back and roared.  Rage flowed from him flooring the empathic creatures in the city but what floored most were the waves of energy.  Nearly every rune in the city whizzed around and formed a wall between Vegeta and the city below.  His roar continued on for seemingly forever but the transformation that Vegeta underwent scared many.  His muscles bulged to incredible proportions as his hair grew longer and wilder.  Although the size of Vegeta looked frightening, it was the look on his face and the power radiating out of him that scared most.  He looked like he was on the verge of insanity with the wide grin and the wild look in his eyes.  They mistook battle lust for insanity.  Karie and Bardock nodded to one another and suddenly two more explosions rocked the city as Karie and Bardock began to power up.  Their screams echoed across the city just as Vegeta's had.  Neither of them underwent any transformations like Vegeta but their expressions matched his.

Arthain looked over at Gahlanthas and noticed worry in his eyes but that he was still keeping his composure, unlike everyone else in the city.  The citizens, including the other elders, were in either three categories, fainted, in a state of disbelief and doubt of their sanity, or scared out of their wits.  Arthain wanted to laugh out loud so much it nearly hurt.  Suddenly it occurred to him he didn't care what the people here thought of him and burst out laughing.  His laughter scared everyone, even Gahlanthas, because it wasn't normal.  There was an overlapping sound in it as if there were more then one person laughing, and indeed there was.

Vegeta looked down and saw Arthain laughing and was about to frown when he noticed the object of his laughter, the citizen of the capital.  Vegeta's grin just creased his face even more.  Karie and Bardock decided to take advantage of Vegeta's momentary distraction and both slammed punches into his face.  Vegeta's head rocked back for an instant before it snapped forward and there was no grin on it anymore, only a snarl of anger.  With a roar and a burst of energy Karie and Bardock were violently thrown away from him.

Vegeta blasted forward only to be met by twin kicks from Bardock and Karie.  A shockwave blasted out from Vegeta and rocked everything behind him but it didn't affect him at all.  In fact he had grabbed the legs when they had connected with his chest and used them to slam the two saiyans together.  Vegeta split them apart only to find their hands had inter-locked.  His eyes widened as a massive stream of energy rippled out from their combined hands, down between them, and directly into Vegeta.  The resounding explosion was heard for miles in every direction as Vegeta was thrown backwards away from the other two.

Before Vegeta had a chance to recover Bardock and Karie positioned themselves behind and in front of Vegeta using instant transmission and fired massive energy waves at him.  Vegeta snarled and formed a protective shield around him as he thought of a plan to get out.  He couldn't move without lessening the shield's strength and being hit with the full force of the energy waves but he couldn't stay there forever either.  His shield would collapse before their energy ran out.  Suddenly an idea formed in his mind, the second technique Arthain had taught them.

Vegeta roared as he summoned yet more energy from within and began to manipulate his shield.  Suddenly twin shield spikes shot out from either side as they headed for Bardock and Karie.  Karie's eyes widened and just narrowly avoided being impaled by Vegeta's shield.  Bardock wasn't so lucky.  The shield tore through Bardock's left arm as he tried to get out of the way.  He screamed for a second and glared at Vegeta as he held his ruined arm.       

Suddenly Vegeta was in Bardock's face.  A knee in the face collapsed the nose causing blood from his face to join that of his arm.  A kick slammed into Vegeta's back as Karie tried to hurt Vegeta while his attention was away from her.  Vegeta whirled around and slammed the back of his fist into her face.  Karie flipped back and prepared to ready herself but wasn't fast enough and got a knee in her stomach.  Karie doubled over for a second before her face was raised up, forcing her to look into Vegeta's hand.  An explosion rocked across the sky yet again as a energy blast ruined Karie's face and sent her careening down into the city below at breakneck speeds.

A second later a large crash was heard as Karie slammed into a side street in the city creating a large smoking crater.  Vegeta turned back Bardock, a second later a snap was heard as Bardock's back was broken like a twig.  Vegeta grabbed Bardock's now limp leg and swung him down into the same street as Karie.  A second crash and a second crater was created in the street, just a few feet from Karie's crater.

Arthain nodded in satisfaction, "Ah, not bad but could have been better.  He went rather easy on them but it was to be expected."  Arthain said happily.

Gahlanthas looked at Arthain as if he was insane, "Did you just see what he did?  He killed his two companions!"  Gahlanthas exclaimed.

Arthain laughed again although this time there was just his voice, "No, they aren't dead, see look there."  Arthain said as he pointed at Vegeta.

Vegeta had, by this time, collected Karie and Bardock and were carefully caring them in his arms.  He floated past Arthain and landed on the palace platform.  He gently set the two down and reached into a pocket inside his battle armour and pulled out a capsule.  Vegeta breathed deeply and powered down to the level he had been when first arriving at the city.  The king pressed the button on the top of the capsule and threw it down on the platform.  A cloud of smoke erupted and five regeneration chambers, with an electric generator, appeared out of no where.  Vegeta picked Karie and Bardock up and place them in their own chamber and turned it on.

By this time Gahlanthas, the elders, and Arthain had arrived and were staring at Vegeta like he was an alien.

Vegeta looked Gahlanthas in the eye, "They will be out in a few hours, and then I'll take the chambers away.  Tell whatever god gets excited about them that I have no intention of spreading the knowledge and any poor shit that tries to steal it will not live to see the next day."  Vegeta said and proceeded to sit down in front of the chambers as he waited for the others to get out.  There wasn't anyone to do or talk with aside from Arthain that Vegeta cared about and he couldn't even do anything with Arthain.

Gahlanthas looked over at Vegeta in surprise and turned to look at Arthain.  Arthain just shrugged his shoulders, "It might make it more understandable if you realize that every time saiyans are mortally wounded and recover our power grows substantially.  So those two will be much stronger the next time they fight at their maximum." Arthain said and walked over to join Vegeta.

Gahlanthas frowned for a moment and noticed Gohan had been gone all morning.  The elder walked over to the two saiyans and posed his question, "Where is your advisor?"

Vegeta waved him off as he replied, "Oh he's out getting the sword; he should be back soon.  At the speed he's going at it should only take him a few days although he could probably get it faster if he flew.  I wonder why he isn't."

Gahlanthas' eyes bugged out, "WHAT!  By himself?  He won't be able to do it, trust me.  That place is a fortress; it would take an army to break it down."  Gahlanthas cried.

Vegeta looked back at Gahlanthas and smirked, "An army of your pathetic warriors perhaps, but he's more then enough.  Besides he said he could do it with little to no blood shed and I'd rather not get my hands dirty doing such a menial and pathetic task so I let him do it.  He'll be back in a few days, just you wait and see."  Vegeta said and turned back to watching the regeneration chambers. "Now do not disturb me again.  I'm busy with something much more important, like how I am going to find a nail clipper."

Gahlanthas glared at the back of Vegeta's head.  He had two choices: stand there and argue acting like a child or obey Vegeta and leave him alone.  Neither sat very well with the ruler of Vihn but after a moment of indecision he turned on his heel and walked off, "I have work I need to do."  Gahlanthas declared.

Vegeta nodded, "Yes, you go do that and be a good little ruler."  Vegeta said.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

2 days later…

Gohan awoke and began to prepare himself mentally and physically for the day ahead or rather the night.  The sun was beginning to set and the two of them had collapsed that morning in exhaustion due to their travelling.  

Gohan and Alihvan had been running non-stop since the barrier wanting to make good time.  Alihvan had managed to keep pace with him the entire time but appeared completely worn out and collapsed on the spot when they stopped.  Gohan had been exhausted due to lack of sleep; Alihvan had been exhausted due to lack of sleep and energy.  Gohan had decided that they would camp right there because he doubted much would disturb them and he was too sleepy to be choosy about where he slept.

They had rested at the edge of a forest that ended abruptly into open grasslands just in front of a huge mountain range that stretched to either side as far as the eye could see.  Khaz'Hila rose before them, or more precisely, the mountain that Khaz'Hila resided in.  All that could be seen of the fortress city was a series of four huge walls surrounding the entrance to the underground city.  The first wall was situated on ground level before the mountain while each succeeding wall was located higher up on the mountain then the previous.  Each of the three walls resided on huge platforms that seemed to have been carved by some huge god like force out of the cliff face.

Alihvan woke up shortly after Gohan.  Gohan watched her stretch and yawn with an amused look on his face.  Alihvan looked around sleepily as she tried to sort out her bearings.  Finding nothing really familiar, aside from the rock that fit the rock shape indentation in her back where she had slept on it and Gohan, she sighed.

"You didn't happen to bring any food with you eh?"  Alihvan asked curiously.

Gohan snickered and shook his head and was about to speak when something suddenly hit him.  He looked at her more closely and smirked to himself causing her to get nervous. "You know Alihvan.  You remind me of someone.  I know a certain someone that does the exact same thing as you when they wake up.  You two should meet, you would like him.  He and my brother love to pull pranks just like you do…  Actually they are known as the best in our reality and sought by many."  Gohan said with a smile.

Alihvan eyed Gohan warily, "I'll ah…. Think about it."  She said, "I don't really have any plans on leaving my grandpa or my people."

Gohan nodded and said no more on the subject, "I think we should get moving."

Alihvan nodded and sprung to her feet, "I suppose I'll have to wait until we get to Khaz'Hila to get anything to eat.  I'm not really partial to tree bark and grass."  She said as she eyed her surroundings.

Gohan chuckled and began to run towards the main gates.  Alihvan caught up soon after and the two continued on in silence all the way to the gates.  The gates looked as imposing up close as they did from afar… to normal people at least.  Gohan and Alihvan were anything but normal.  Gohan had wrapped his tail around his waist to appear human while Alihvan just covered her ears with her hair.  There were many guards at the gates but the gates themselves were wide open to allow traffic to flow in and out of the city.  It may be a fortress city but it still required constant re-supplying if it wished to stay that way.  The guards looked at Gohan and Alihvan and stopped them before they could go through the gates.

"What business do you have here?"  A tall burly human asked.

Gohan looked offended, "We are merely a father and daughter who come here in search for shelter and food."  A grumble from both their stomachs reinforced their later statement, "We have no desire to eat tree bark and grass all the way from here to the next city."  Gohan explained.

The guard looked at the two hard but couldn't detect any lies in what they had said. "What's up with the crazy outfit?"  The guard demanded as he pointed at Gohan's saiyan battle armour.

Gohan smiled, "Well, I need to be able to protect myself somehow right?  Try it out, swing your sword at my chest as hard as you possibly can."  Gohan said as he proudly thrust his chest out.

The guard grinned, "Gladly, it's been a long time since I was able to swing at something solid."  He said and swung his two-handed sword as hard as possible.  A loud **SNAP was heard as the blade of the sword snapped in two.  The guard stared at Gohan in surprise.**

Gohan grinned, "See, it is armour, and damn good armour as well.  I would not part with it for anything."  He said and proceeded to walk through the gates, "Nice meeting you… ahh… guard."

Alihvan hurried through after him leaving the stunned guard behind.  Once they were outside hearing distance of the main gate Alihvan addressed Gohan.

"Was that really necessary?"  She asked.

Gohan shrugged, "Not really, but I was bored, and now I am not.  I'll have something to tell Vegeta when I get back.  He will chuckle at it." 

Alihvan shook her head, "And what about the lying?  I'm not your daughter and you're not my father."

Gohan laughed out loud at that, "I did not lie.  I said a father and daughter.  You are a daughter to someone and I am a father of one, soon to be two, children.  No word I said was a lie."  Gohan replied and turned to look at Alihvan with a quizzical look in his eyes, "Do you not have some errands to run?  I thought you were not going to accompany me the entire way."

Alihvan smiled at Gohan, "Oh yes thank you for reminding me I think I will…"  Suddenly Alihvan's head snapped forward as she stared at the mountain in both anger and fear.  "… Accompany you…  Plans have changed."  She said mysteriously.

Gohan looked at her questioningly.  Alihvan caught his look and settled herself down, "Something's changed.  I'm with you now… and I don't think you'll have to worry too much about what you kill in there."  She said.

Gohan frowned and the two continued up the mountain in silence.  When they reached the second gate Gohan immediately knew something was wrong.  It wasn't until he used ki blanket that he was able to figure out the wrongness.  The people guarding this gate were not human.  They looked human but they felt like nothing he had ever sensed before.  They weren't mortal.

Gohan looked over at Alihvan, "Stay behind me.  We will get through; I will not let them hurt you.  Not like last time..."  He trailed off so low that even Alihvan had a hard time catching it.  She looked over at Gohan and wondered what he meant by 'last time' but obeyed nonetheless.

The second gate was open like the first and the guards didn't bother trying to stop and question them.  If they had gotten through the first gate then there was no reason they shouldn't be allowed through the second.  The guards eyed everyone nonetheless making many nervous and wondering what they were walking into.  Only two people out of the entire stream of people heading in had a clue.

It was on their way to the third gate that Gohan noticed something that had been bugging him since the very beginning, "Why are there not anyone coming out from Khaz'Hila?"  Gohan asked Alihvan, "Do they have a second entrance for that?"

Alihvan frowned and shook her head, "No they don't… and now that you mention it, it is strange.  The last time I was here people were flowing both ways…"  She answered perplexed.

Gohan frowned and started to slowly power up so as to not let anyone onto what he was doing.  Runes quickly flashed and disappeared around Alihvan as she too prepared herself for the worst. 

The next two gates passed like the second.  The guards merely watched the people flow by with hungry eyes and disturbed them not.  Most weren't fully aware of what was going on, only that something odd was happening.  Gohan looked back down to the first gate as he reached the main doors that led into the mountain fortress.  The lower gates had been closed for the night and a few people were milling around outside, more then likely in frustration at not being able to reach the gates before they closed.

"Come on, hurry through, we want to close for the night!"  A massive guard shouted from his post just beside the huge gates that led into the mountain.

Gohan looked at Alihvan and the two of them nodded in agreement.  The two entered the gates to the city and Gohan gawked at what he saw for a moment before he recovered.  The entire mountain had been hollowed out and the city sat within it.  There were various levels to the city with the rich and powerful living at the top and the poor and weak living at the bottom.  The entrance was situated exactly halfway between the bottom and top levels of the city.

Gohan looked over at Alihvan, "Do you have any clue where the sword may be?"  He asked.

She nodded, "Yes, I know exactly where it is.  It's on the top level in the very heart of the temple of Rage."  She responded.

"Rage, is that not an emotion?"

Alihvan nodded, "Yes, rage is an emotion, but it's also the name of the god of battle."  She replied.

Gohan nodded, "Well, no time like the present.  I have already made it this far without any blood shed; let's see if I can go the rest of the way.  If it had been Vegeta he would have just blasted the gates apart and then blasted the mountain apart not caring how many innocents he killed."  Gohan mused to himself.

"I'm afraid there'll be a lot of blood shed before the night is through… and I hardly think many of the people here are… innocent."  She said softly to herself, to softly for even Gohan to hear.  To Gohan she said, "Yes, I know.  He seems rather hot headed eh?"  Alihvan said.

A thought occurred to Gohan suddenly, "You believe us do you not?  That we are capable of blowing up entire mountains, yet your grand father does not.  Why?"  Gohan asked.

Alihvan phrased her words carefully, "Because he is blind.  He's loveable, polite and powerful; the most powerful of his kind… but that power is what blinds him.  He cannot see, or I should say rather, that he does not wish to see and accept that anyone can be more powerful then him."  Alihvan sighed, "He has been cooped up in the capital city for so long that he hasn't notice the world changing around him.  There are creatures out there whose power dwarfs his own.  Who could kill him with a flick of their finger… you and Vegeta are two such examples, there are many others as well.  Dragons, which have just been created recently, demons… well I should say demon lords, high lords and the emperor.  The lesser demons couldn't touch him.  Also the titans, gods, and tharkans are all more powerful.  The gods and demons have always been here but the titans and Tharkans were brought here by the gods to prevent them from being completely wiped out.  Whether you wish to believe it or not the weakest creatures are the ones that reside upon this world.  As you get further and further out into the universe the creatures get stronger and stronger until they rival the very gods themselves.  There are some planets at the very edge that even the gods fear to go to.  I don't know why, they refuse to even talk about it.  It makes me wonder what's there.  Anyways I have a feeling we may very well see a demon tonight."  She answered.

Gohan frowned thoughtfully, "How do you know all of this?"  Gohan asked.

Alihvan giggled, "Unlike you I'm favoured by the gods.  I don't have to do these quests to talk to them.  I can talk to them whenever I feel like it.  I've always been curious about everything."  She said with a smile.

Gohan sighed, "Great, Trunks' female double… just what I needed to deal with.  Let me guess you are also physic, telepathic and telekinetic?"  He asked sarcastically.

She was startled by the question then sighed and nodded totally missing the sarcasm in the question, "Yes I am, although I can't read your mind, or any of the other saiyans.  As for my physic power, it's not perfect, I can only see a short distance into the future and it's always just a possibility.  Although the possibility of us meeting a powerful creature tonight is so high that it will be pure luck if we do not encounter it."

Gohan sighed, "Great… and here I was thinking we could do it without fighting…  Oh well, bring him on!"  Gohan said finally and a grin creased his face.  He hadn't had a powerful foe to fight in a long time and his adrenaline had started to pump at the mere prospect of a good fight.

Alihvan shook her head sadly, _saiyans… they've changed a lot… but it seems some things will always be the same_.  Alihvan looked up and concentrated.  Runes flashed around her startling everyone within sight.  The guards gaped at her as she revealed who she was, a rune mage.  Only elves knew how to use rune magic safely and they were extremely distrusted here.  With that she lifted into the air and flew upwards towards the top level.  The guards down below started yelling at her to stop but she didn't heed them.

Gohan shook his head in amusement, "Well, I guess there is no point in hiding our presences any longer."  He said to himself.  Gohan let his tail unwind from around his waist causing some people to scream in shock drawing attention to him. Everyone stared at him as Gohan revealed himself as a species alien to their world.  A roar of rage signalled Gohan's power up and a shockwave rippled outwards knocking everyone around him to the ground.  A second later Gohan blasted into the air as he flew off to catch up to Alihvan.

The guards didn't even bother yelling at Gohan.  The brief display of power had shaken the lesser demons in their boots.  When a being exhibited power enough to rival their lords they knew well enough to stay away from him/her.

Due to the excitement caused by Gohan and Alihvan at the entrance it wasn't surprising when the city alarm sounded a minute later.  Gohan looked over to Alihvan, "Let us get this over with quickly.  The entire city will be arrayed against us soon.  Once we have the sword I can blow a hole in the side of the mountain and I can fly us out of here."  Gohan yelled over to Alihvan.

"Fly us out?  Are you crazy!?  What about the barrier?"  She yelled back.

Gohan smirked, "I do not believe that will be much of a problem.  I think I have figured out exactly how it stops people from flying… and let us just say that I have devised a way around it."  Gohan yelled back.

Alihvan looked at Gohan hard for a moment trying to see if he had lost his sanity but all she saw was a smug look of satisfaction.  She sighed as she replied, "Alright fine.  It'll be easy to find the place, it's the biggest building on the top level and there are huge statues surrounding i…"  She stopped as they crested the edge of the top level.  The temple was there, and so were the statues…  Only the statues were not of the god Rage, but were statues of demonic creatures.

Gohan looked over at Alihvan, "Seems there has been some redecorating since you were last here."  He remarked mildly.

For some reason Alihvan exploded in anger, "HOW DARE THEY!  HOW DARE THEY DEFILE THE TEMPLE LIKE THAT!  I'LL MAKE THEM PAY!"  She roared in a rune enhanced voice.

Gohan frowned, floated over to Alihvan, and clamped his hand onto her shoulder. "No you will not.  We are here for one reason, to get the sword, not to avenge the changing of a few statues!" Gohan said firmly.

Alihvan glared at Gohan for a moment before she visibly calmed herself, "Alright fine, let's get this over with.  I can't stand what has been done to this place."

Gohan nodded and flew towards the temple with Alihvan close behind, "You know…" Gohan started. "We are here to get the sword right?  Well if we just say… happen across the defiler on the way there, or on the way out, I do not see any thing wrong with exacting a bit of revenge."  He said with a small smile.

Alihvan laughed gaily and her mood brightened considerably, "You know, that made me feel a lot better.  Thank you, I hope we do meet up with the leader here.  He apparently has been consorting with demons and will make him the one who changed these statues."  She laughed.

Gohan smiled, glad that she was happy, or at least happier.  When they reached the front steps to the temple an idea occurred to Gohan.

"Hey, Alihvan, I have an idea.  You go in and get the sword.  I will stay here and guard our exit.  The demon worshippers may have changed and defiled the outside of the temple but if this is a true temple then it would have been impossible for the inside to be defiled.  You should be able to handle anything within; it is those out here that will require me to deal with."  Gohan said.

Alihvan smiled happily, glad that one problem she had been worried about was solved.  "Alright Gohan, take care.  I don't want to come out to your corpse.  I am after all getting this sword for you."

Alihvan rushed up the steps of the temple and disappeared inside.  Gohan turned and kept an eye on everything else as he waited for Alihvan to return.  Gohan stretched out his ki blanket and took stock of where everyone and everything was.  Gohan's eyes widened immediately as he sensed what was happening.  All of the darker life forces, the demonic forces, were rapidly moving all over the city while all the human, dwarven, hawken and elven life forces were winking out, not one by one, but hundreds every second.  Gohan strained his ears and the sounds of screams faintly reached them.  Gohan shook his head in grief;_ no wonder why there was not anyone leaving the city.  There is not anyone left alive to leave the city.  I really do not want to witness what is going on down there._

Suddenly a monstrous life force detached itself from the mass down below and rapidly approached the top level.  Many other strong life forces followed the huge one while all of the lesser demons stayed below and feasted upon the scraps of the mortals they had slaughtered.

Gohan braced himself to face the monster of darkness was rising up from the bowels of the mountain.  He didn't have to wait long because suddenly a large shape shot up over the rim of the top level and settled down in front of Gohan.  The demon lord stood ten feet tall and looked quite humanoid to Gohan's surprise.  The only thing that made him appear any different was the blood red skin, white horns, long black hair, and the various spikes jutting from various parts of his body.  From the back of the demon lord two massive wings beat at the air lazily.  A huge sword of fire lay strapped across the demon lords back between the wings.  Soon after several hundred other demons settled down beside the demon lord as the demon lord pulled his sword out in front of him with one hand.

Gohan smirked, "My my, look who decided to join me up here."  Gohan said in a low voice as his saiyan battle lust began to overcome reason, "And you brought some friends, how kind of you."  Gohan said as a crooked grin split his face.

The creature eyed Gohan in curiosity, "You are… different.  Most mortals would tremble at my mere presence but you are… excited by it.  I have never met someone like you."  The demon said in a quiet deep dark voice that echoed across the cavern.  He suddenly noticed something waving lazily behind Gohan, "Ah, I see.  You ARE unique.  What are you?  Some genetic mistake the gods made?"

Gohan arced back and laughed, "No, I'm no defect…  I'm a saiyan.  A pure saiyan and all saiyans love, no, thrive off the thrill of fighting the strongest beings in existence."  Gohan replied.

The demon smirked, "And you think you can beat me?  Listen 'saiyan'.  I am willing to make you a deal.  You intrigue me, I will admit that, and because you intrigue me I will give you a chance to surrender and serve me.  It has its perks, even if they are not apparent at first."  The demon said in his deep rumbling voice.

Alihvan had arrived, with the sword, just in time to hear the demons proposal and after seeing Gohan's face she feared for the worst.  She decided to stay within the shadows of the temple.  She did not want to face a demon lord underground where her powers were at their weakest.  She looked at Gohan and was comforted and dismayed at his next words.

Gohan smirked right back at the demon lord, "I think you mistake me.  My race thrives off battle…  But I thrive off killing creatures like you.  In fact, I'm preparing to fight a creature so powerful that it makes you seem like an ant beneath my heel, which is exactly where you will be once I am finished with you!"  Gohan said the last coming out in a growl.

Gohan arced back again, but this time laughter didn't ensue.  Instead waves of pure raw energy rolled off Gohan as he roared in rage and powered up.  The demon lord backed up a step as he stared at Gohan in surprise.  He did not expect any mortal to possess this much raw energy and it was trifling worrying.  Gohan's muscles bulged to twice their size as his hair grew longer and wilder.  The transformation scared all the regular demons and increased the demon lord's wariness.  Soon the roar ended and Gohan stood before the demon lord as fully powered up ultra super saiyan.

_No point in taking it all the way_, Gohan though, _I really do not want to take it to the next level because if I did the whole mountain is liable to collapse.  Besides, this should be enough.  Gohan looked up at the demon lord and grinned so evilly that it reminded the demon of himself. "Now, shall we get this party started?"  Gohan said in a low voice._

Gohan didn't wait for an answer and shot forward at an incredible speed.  A shockwave sounded as Gohan planted his fist under the demons chin sending him onto his back.  No sooner had the demon lord hit the ground then he was back on his feet glaring at the grinning saiyan.  "I have never met a mortal as powerful as you, but I'll make you regret the day you took your first breath!"  The demon roared as he charged Gohan.

Gohan side stepped the swipe of the blade and kicked the demons feet out from under him.  The demon reached out with his unburdened hand, caught himself and swung his feet around to slam into Gohan as his claws dug into the ground for support.  Gohan hurtled through the air to smash into one of the demonic statues.  The statue cracked and fell as Gohan went right through it but before it had fallen more then a foot it was incinerated as Gohan blasted forward through the place where it had once been.  The demon caught Gohan's hand in his own as Gohan took a swing at him.  The demon's hold was short lived as Gohan fired an energy blast into the arm holding his hand.

The demon roared and let go of Gohan, but not before breathing out a ball of fire at him.  The ball slammed into Gohan and did nothing.  The aura that surrounded Gohan was hotter then ball of liquid fire that the demon had spat at him.  The ground was evidence of that as it glowed red whenever Gohan passed over it.  

The demon frowned and snapped his fingers.  Suddenly all the demons that had followed him jumped at Gohan.  Gohan merely smiled and started to blast them apart one at a time.  Dispatching the regular demons was an easy task for Gohan, or would have been if the demon lord hadn't decided to join the fray.  Gohan suddenly found his hands full dodging the earth shattering blows from the demons kicks and punches as well as the multitudes of other demons around him.

Gohan suddenly frowned and shot high into the air only to stop at the very top of the cavern.  He looked down and saw that all of the demons were following.  A grin appeared yet again on his face as he raised his hands above his head.

"**MASENKO-HA!**"  Gohan roared as he unleashed a massive torrent of raw energy downwards towards the demons.  

The demons only had time to look on in horror before most of them were engulfed in the energy wave.  The wave continued on through the demons, ripping them apart as if they were nothing but air.  The demon lord stood his ground, determined not to be beaten by a mere mortal.  The lord of demons stretched out his hands and grasped the sword tightly with both hands.  When the energy wave slammed into the sword it was instantly destroyed much to the demon lord's dismay but he didn't budge from his spot.  When the energy encountered his hands he clenched all the muscles in his body and summoned the darkness from within him and held the wave at bay.

Gohan's eyes widened as he sensed his energy wave halt before the demon lord.  His grin turned into a snarl as he roared yet again pouring more energy into the blast.

The demon lord couldn't believe what was happening.  It was not possible for a mortal to hold this much energy without their body exploding.  He knew he could handle it but it would severely weaken him.  Suddenly a cracking sound was heard.  Gohan wouldn't give way, the demon lord wouldn't give way, but something had to, and that something was the platform the top level was situated upon.  A resounding crack was heard by all in the cavern as the northern edge of the platform gave way.  The demon lord suddenly found himself being carried away unwillingly by the energy blast due to the betrayal of the ground he had stood upon.

The demon lord snarled in anger and used his powers to levitate on the spot.  The demon glared up at Gohan through the wave and snarled in anger.  With a roar of anger he twisted the blast and sent it tumbling down towards the lower platforms.  Gohan stopped pouring energy into the wave as soon as he felt the resistance end and frowned.  He knew the demon wasn't dead.  He could still feel his presences, and in fact flew to meet him.

Twin explosions rocked the cavern city of Khaz'Hila as the energy wave Gohan had fired slammed into the lower platforms killing scores of lesser demons and as the fists of the demon lord and Gohan collided together.  The two began to hammer away at one another with increasing speed with the demon showing surprising agility despite his bulk and height.  They continued that way for several minutes until the demon start to smirk.

"Well I must say this has been an entertaining fight.  I haven't felt this good in a long time but I'm afraid I must end it… It's time to take it up a notch, to my maximum."  The demon lord said as he brought to bear all his power.  Gohan's eyes widened as he realized the demon now overpowered him by a lot.  Soon all Gohan could do was dodge the blows that were coming at him much to fast for him to see.  He had to rely on his instinct and reaction but both were greatly reduced due to his bulking up to ultra.

All of a sudden Gohan made a slip and the demon slammed a massive fist into Gohan's face that rocked him to the side an instant before the demons smashed both his fists into Gohan's skull.  Gohan fell from the air like a falling star to land with a massive crash into the ground just in front of the temple.

The demon was all over Gohan before he could even respond to the impact hammering fist after fist into the young saiyans body.  Alihvan watched in horror as her protection was brutalized by the demon lord and realized she had to do something to distract the demon lord long enough for her to grab Gohan and teleport them to safety.

A flash of light distracted the demon from his play with Gohan causing him to look over towards the temple.  Suddenly his eyes widened as he saw a massive pillar of runes surrounding a young girl.  The pillar of runes whirled around Alihvan and began to condense into a single ball of blazing energy as she drew more and more runes in the air before her.  Suddenly she shot both her hands out in front of her as the ball of runes settled just in front of them.  A massive pentagram of runes appeared before the ball of eldritch runes and suddenly the ball was sent flying through the pentagram and at the demon lord with god like speed.

The demon lord didn't even have time to move before it was all said and done and the energy ball slammed into his chest.  The energy exploded into a wall of blue fire that wrapped itself around the demon lord where it exploded a second time.  The second explosion ripped the demon lord from Gohan and threw him off the platform.

She started to run forward towards Gohan but stopped as a black shape dropped down between her and Gohan.  Her eyes widened and she began to back up, "How… how did you recover to fast?"  She gasped in surprise.

The demon lord grinned, "Because I am a demon lord!  Not some pathetic mortal.  It will take more then rune magic to hurt me, even if it's at a high level."  The demon snarled out and began to advance on Alihvan.

As he got near her he stopped as he noticed her eyes  A grin creased his face as he realized who he was standing before, "Well well well, what do we have here…  The rune g…"  The demon lord was cut off as a foot slammed into his face.

The demon lord flew several meters to the side where he slammed into the ground and skidded for several more.  When he looked up he saw Gohan glaring at him with such hatred and rage that it left the demon lord speechless.

Gohan glared at the demon lord as his rage threatened to overwhelm him, "YOU!  LEAVE HER ALONE!  I WILL NOT ALLOW ANYONE OR ANYTHING TO HURT HER AGAIN!" Gohan roared, caught in the memories of the past. Alihvan and the demon lord were both thoroughly confused but they also realised that didn't matter right now because Gohan was on the verge of exploding.

Gohan's fists clenched together so tightly that blood began to leak between the fingers when suddenly he snapped.  Gohan arched back and roared as rage overwhelmed him.  Energy once again began to ripple out from Gohan but this time they were so intense that the entire mountain began to shake and tremble.  Both the demon lord and Alihvan stared at Gohan in horror; the demon lord out of a current fear, and Alihvan out of a past.  Suddenly a massive explosion, bigger then all that had occurred so far combined erupted from Gohan preceded by a massive shockwave.  The results were the destruction of the mountain fortress.  The entire thing exploded in a massive eruption of fire and death.  Only Alihvan was spared due to her magic and a shield Gohan had erected around her and the demon lord who was strong enough to take the force.

When the smoke and fire cleared the two noticed a startling change in Gohan.  His muscle mass had decreased and became more tone.  His hair had grown longer and wilder still and lightning now rippled up and down his body.  He glared at the demon lord and the only thing that resided within his eyes was death.

"I hope you are prepared to DIE!"  Gohan yelled as he attacked.  The demon didn't know what hit him as Gohan used instant transmission to appear instantly in front of the demon and began to hammer blows faster then the demon could see.  The demon just floated there in the sky as he was pummelled from all directions by a being he couldn't see let alone catch.  Finally Gohan decided he had had enough fun and slammed both of his feet into the demons face before he grabbed him by the arms and swung him into the sky.

"THIS IS A NEW TECHNIQUE I HAD BEEN SAVING!  ENJOY!"  Gohan roared as he spread his arms and legs apart and gathered energy in front of him. Gohan poured more and more energy into his attack as he drew upon the power of his rage for fuel.  Energy seemed to gather at specific vortexes in front of Gohan and there were five in all. One in front of each palm, one in front of each foot and the last, largest one, in front of Gohan's chest.  Once Gohan had deemed he had enough energy he roared out, "**DARKNESS ETERNAL!"  And let loose all of the energy he had been gathering.**

The ball at the center of Gohan's chest shot forward into one massive wave of energy that kept growing and growing as it was fed by the four points at Gohan's hands and feet.  The demon lord's eyes widened in shock a split second before the energy wave engulfed and incinerated him.  He didn't even have a chance to defend himself and soon found himself careening back into the depths of the abyss.

When Gohan sensed the last of the demons life force wink out of this existence he stopped his attack and floated there in the sky breathing deeply.  He suddenly remembered Alihvan and quickly looked down and there she was, staring up at him in shock and fear.  Gohan shook his head sadly.  He had over done it, he knew he had.  He floated down to Alihvan, slowly as to not scare her anymore.

As he got near he put his hand behind his head and scratched his head sheepishly, "Ahh… I guess I over did it, I am sorry."  He said.

Alihvan shook herself out of her stupor and was quick to reassure Gohan, "No no it's not that.  It's just…  I've never seen such power emitted by a mortal and it… scared me.  It makes me wonder about the future and if others will possess that much power."  She said and quickly continued catching Gohan's weird look, "No offence… but look what happened, you, a kind, considerate person who always helps those in need became lost due to the amount of power you possessed.  What would happen if someone with bad moral values came into possession of such power?  I shudder to think of the consequences."  She said.

Gohan nodded sympathetically, "Yes… I know what you mean…  We are here to get Arthain's body back so he can help us fight one such person… Only this person was good to being with but the amount of power she acquired it drove her insane."  He said.

Alihvan nodded and smiled, "Well… I'm glad you can control yourself after the battle.  That's a blessing I'm willing to count… I got the sword, let's get out of here.  You said you could fly us out of here without the barrier hurting us right?"

Gohan nodded, "Heh… We will not be flying, but we will be outside the barrier really fast." Gohan said.

Alihvan looked up towards the sky that had begun to turn black, "Well either way I think we should leave, now."  She replied.

Gohan looked up and quickly agreed.  He suddenly appeared in front of Alihvan and grabbed her arm.  He brought his other hand to his forehead and searched for Vegeta's life force, and when found, teleported to it.

----------------------------

Back at the palace in the capital city of Vihn…

Vegeta was following his nose as he headed towards the dining room when something, or rather someone, appeared rather abruptly in front of him.  With a yell Vegeta stumbled backwards and was about to kill whoever it was until he recognized Gohan.  A second later he recognized Alihvan and the sword she was carrying.

Vegeta smirked, "Hmph, so that's where she went.  I see you two got the sword…  That is the sword right?"  Vegeta asked.

Alihvan nodded, "Yes, this is it, the Sword of the Avenger."  She said as she presented the sword to Vegeta.

Vegeta smiled, "Finally, took you long enough Gohan.  Why did your power spike like it did?  Meet some unexpected trouble?"  Vegeta asked as he took the sword from Alihvan.

Gohan nodded, "Yes as a matter of fact I did.  Getting in to the city was much easier then getting out.  Going in they welcomed us with open arms because they wanted to eat us.  To get out we had to battle through a legion of lesser demons, several scores of regular demons and a demon lord.  It was the demon lord that caused me problems.  I had to go to my maximum to beat him."  Gohan confessed.

Vegeta's eyes bugged out, "YOU MEAN I MISSED A GOOD FIGHT!"  Vegeta yelled and Gohan nodded, "ARGH!  I can't believe this, next time Gohan I am going with you.  I'm not going to let you have all the fun!"

Gohan laughed, "As you wish my liege."  Gohan said mockingly.

"Don't you start Gohan; I won't miss out on another good fight!"  Vegeta declared as he waved the sword around.

Alihvan shook her head in wonder, _these saiyans are all crazy_!

Gohan looked over at Alihvan before speaking again, "Vegeta, I think we should keep our mental barriers up.  Alihvan is a telepath and she can read our minds.  It is not that I do not trust her with my secrets, it just there are some things I would rather no one know, and I am sure you are the same way Vegeta."  Gohan said.

Vegeta eyed Alihvan, "Hmm…. I hadn't any plans on lowering the barrier but now I have even more reason not to.  Thank you Gohan."  Vegeta said as he looked down the hallway, "Now if you'll excuse me… diner awaits."

Suddenly twin growls shook the hall causing Vegeta to look back in amusement.  Alihvan and Gohan laughed sheepishly.  Gohan looked at himself and then at Alihvan before he spoke again, "Vegeta… tell Gahlanthas we will be there for diner but we will be late.  I think we should clean up before we go, and after that I am taking a dip in the regeneration chambers.  I would go there now but I am too hungry to heal."  Gohan said and Alihvan nodded her agreement.

Vegeta shrugged, "Sure why not, it's not as if we are trying to eat him out of his and home… Oh wait we are.  Oh well his tough luck."  Vegeta said as he strapped the sword across his back and continued down the hallway.

Thirty minutes later Gohan walked into the dining room and took his place beside Vegeta.  The food had just started to come out so he hadn't missed much.  Gahlanthas shook his head from his position at the head of the table as he looked at Gohan.  His daughter had arrived just a few minutes before him and had taken her place at his side.  She didn't say where she had gone and no one else would give him any clue but he was intelligent enough to know that wherever she went was connected with Gohan somehow.  He looked again at the sword he held in his hands and shook his head.  He couldn't believe the story Vegeta had told him.  A demon lord?  Defeated by a pathetic monkey human?  He wouldn't believe it.  He figured Gohan had snuck in, stolen the sword, and snuck out before anyone had any clue as to what had happened.

The only thing that couldn't be explained by that thought was the ruins of Khaz'Hila.  He had used his rune magic to look across the distance to Khaz'Hila and nothing made sense.  Nothing he knew had the power to destroy a mountain fortress and he wasn't about to consider the possibility that Gohan had done it.

Either way how Gohan got the sword was irrelevant, what did matter was that he had gotten it and had returned with it and now he was forced to give the saiyans another quest.  Suddenly a thought occurred to him and he began to smile once more.  He had a quest that they would either go home before accomplishing or would die trying to.  No one could find the main dragon hive and if one did getting in, snatching a baby dragon egg and getting out was impossible.  Stealth wouldn't help them much in a situation where smell gave them away far more easily then sight and hearing.  He was sure he could take a few dragons on his own with his powerful magic, but a whole dragon clan?  Nothing short of a god could accomplish that feat.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two days later inside the council chambers…

"Just give us the quest already; you've had us cooling on our heels for over a day now!  I want this over with so I can get home!"  Vegeta snarled out in impatience.

The elder, Gahlanthas, looked at Vegeta with amusement, "Alright, you want a quest?  Fine, you have one.  I want a baby dragon egg."  The elder said.

Vegeta looked at him in confusion, "A baby what?"  He asked.

"A baby dragon egg.  Dragon's live in clans located within huge systems of interlocking caverns deep underground.  It's there and only there that you will find dragon eggs.  I require a dragon egg to help appease the gods.  Dragons are notorious for killing their favoured race, namely mine, and bringing one of their children will help to make them look more favourably upon you."  Gahlanthas said.

Gohan frowned at that, "Gods hate them?  I thought the gods were the ones that saved them from extinction… How can stealing one of their children help to 'appease' their anger towards us?"  Gohan asked.

Gahlanthas frowned, "I do not know where or from whom you heard that rubbish from but I can assure you that dragons are evil."  Gahlanthas said.

Gohan shrugged, "If you say so.  I have my doubts.  If demons are not evil, how can dragons be?"  Gohan asked.

Tixx stood up straight and yelled, "WHAT!  DEMONS ARE EVIL!  THEY REPRESENT EVERYTHING THAT…"

"… does not agree with your points of view."  Gohan finished for the elder as he glanced at him. "You must realize there is no such thing as 'good' and 'evil.'  Demons do not see themselves as evil.  They see themselves as good.  They perceive you as evil because you represent everything they dislike and hate much like what they do for you.  It is merely a difference of views.  I believe that both sides are right and wrong and therefore neither is good and evil because both sides possess equal quantities of both alignments.  I like using the terms, 'us' and 'them' because it sums everything up nicely and does not leave room for misunderstanding."  Gohan finished.

The shocked looks on the faces of the elders displayed what they thought of Gohan's statements.  Karie and Bardock had been nodding in agreement with Gohan throughout his speech while Vegeta just smirked at the elders as their looks grew more and more shocked.

Gahlanthas finally regained his composure after several moments and cleared his throat, "I do believe that you…"

"… Are too closed minded to accept what I have said.  Let us go Vegeta.  We have some dragon eggs to find and sitting here arguing about philosophical points of view with a bunch of set-in-their-ways elders will solve nothing." Gohan said as he left his seat and the council hall.  Vegeta and the other saiyans left quickly not wanting to wait around for the explosion that was sure to follow.

When they had left hearing range of the elders all of them burst out laughing.  "Oh my Gohan, I didn't know you had it in you!"  Karie said as she held her sides and shook with laughter.

Gohan merely grinned and laughed, "Did you see their faces?  It would not have shocked them nearly so much if it was not for the fact that everything I said was true.  I think I just turned their world up side down and shook it.  They are not going to be too happy about this are they?"  Gohan asked, stilling laughing.

Vegeta snickered, the most composed of the five but on the inside he was laughing so hard he could die, "Heh, Alright we have a job to do like Gohan said.  I'll head north, Gohan you head south because you know that direction.  Bardock, you head east and Karie you head west.  Arthain, I want you to stay here and keep an eye on things.  We'll relay all our findings to Arthain and he'll keep each of us posted of what the others have found alright?  Now move out and don't bother coming back until you find some damned dragons."  Vegeta began to walk away before he stopped and turned to look at Arthain, "Oh, and could you go ask around and see if you can figure out exactly what a dragon is?  It would be rather hard to find them if we don't know what they look like."  Vegeta explained and Arthain nodded, "One more thing, if ANYONE starts the fun without me I will skin them myself when this quest is finished!"

Arthain laughed and headed off through one of the walls startling the people in the adjacent room.  Vegeta just shook his head, "I honestly wonder if he does that out of enjoyment or habit."  Vegeta said as he headed off.  Gohan, Bardock and Karie nodded to each other before they too took off to head in their respective directions.  The search for the dragons had begun.

To be continued…

Oh, if you are wondering how it was light when Gohan teleported to the capital of Vihn… well it's my story for one and two it's a different planet then earth and it's at the center of the universe.  The suns, yes more then one, don't circle horizontally around the planet, and yes the suns circle the planet because they are smaller, well… one does but the other sun circles vertically giving rise to very odd day/night time patterns.

One thing, it's going to take awhile for Vegeta and company to find the dragons for several reasons.  They can't use their life force detection skill because of several reasons.  1, the planet is too big and none of them, with the exception of Arthain, could stretch their ki blanket across the breadth of the planet.  2) even if they could do that it wouldn't help because dragons live underground and the ki blanket has to be directed specifically downwards to detect them but if they do that then they can no longer cover the entire planet but can only do a small portion and would take to long to do the entire planet and 3) they wouldn't know what to look for.  They don't know what the life force of a dragon feels like so even if they could somehow get around 1 and 2, they wouldn't be able to get past 3.  Once they find the dragon lair then they can get there instantly but they have to find it first :).

Man… I was going to add SO much more to this…  Sheesh, was going to do another Trunks/Goten part plus the rest of the quests but if every quest is like this one...  I think I may need to have more then a couple chapters.

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed the exceedingly long chapter; it's freaking 22 pages when it's in print preview.  I truly hope none of you expected me to proof read this beast.


	20. Chapter 19: Revelations

A/N: Guys and girls, I'm truly sorry about the beginning of the chapter. It's going to be extremely boring in comparison to the last but it needs to be done. Just plod through it, it'll hopefully be the last long dull section I write.

A/N: Woo, finally got a proofreader/beta/whatever you want to call it. Although he won't be proof reading that many chapters because I am near the end but the end part is the most important :). Anyways, give a hand to SSJ_ChibiGoten.

**Chapter 19: Revelations**

  
  
Trunks smiled inwardly as he surveyed the rebellion in front of him. The now 14 year old saiyan had been preparing for this event for over a year, ever since the word started to leak out. Many people had been in a state of disbelief and dismay when they first heard that it was Brolly that had devastated the planet well over a year ago. Many didn't believe it but when a few of the soldiers that survived the conflict had confirmed it, outrage had ensued.

Many had wanted Brolly executed for crimes against them. They wanted retribution and revenge for the friends, family and close comrades that had been lost in the fight against him. Trunks had been dead set against it and both Landyn and his mother backed him up. When the future King, regent, and the Queen stood by Brolly's side the race became split. Many, although hated Brolly, respected the throne and were fanatically loyal to it while others were not so keen.

It was those other people that Trunks was currently facing. Trunks and Goten had worked out a plan between the two of them. Most people thought that they were sworn enemies and rivals now. Vil'Tani had gone with Goten when he had joined and became the rebel leader's right hand man. Varitech had gladly allowed them to join his rebellion, It brought Vil'Tani closer to him and he thought he could use the presences of a 'Super' Saiyan to help sway the people to his side. It had brought Vil'Tani close to him, but he still couldn't get her to have any kind of intimate feeling for him and it frustrated him to no end.

Vil'Tani was quite literally never seen away from Goten's side. When he slept, showered, ate, trained and studied she was there, by his side watching, helping, laughing and joking with him. Everyone knew the two would bond fully once Goten came of age, and he was only a year away from that time. Although she was always close, there was one week of every year where she gave him his space, as did everyone else. Many had heard the story by now and knew what the kid had gone through. Few adults could boast having been through worse and those were only the elder ones that had been alive before the early days of the Saiyan war and witnessed the atrocities that had gone on just prior to the split.

Many of the older Saiyans of the rebellion had tried to take control from Varitech but he had them either killed or showed them out right in front of everyone that he was a born leader and why he was a far better choice then them. He was, after all, the son of Thraknor. He kept that secret safe as he planned on freeing his father from his servitude in the palace, upon his coronation. He had been adopted by an elite family that had been impressed by his power not caring about his background. The academy had almost virtually become a battle field. The academy had split down the middle with half siding with Trunks and the other with Varitech; needless to say tensions were high. Those tensions had never turned into out right violence until this week. Goten had 'switched' sides for a single purpose. To feed Trunks the information he needed to keep his kingdom. With the two working, every single one of Varitech's major plans had failed. That's not to say none worked, for many did. Only the ones that would have toppled the throne were the ones that fell through. 

Varitech had a feeling that it was Goten that had caused his major plans to fail but he couldn't do anything about it. Goten had manipulated everything so much that he was one of the two people that held the movement together. The other side had six 'Super' Saiyans on their side and only Goten's presences kept the moral high. There was also the added part that if Goten left Vil'Tani would leave as well and that was the last thing he wanted. He was still working on her and he thought he might be making progress.

Trunks latest strategy would crumple the rebellion once and for all. He had gathered his entire force inside the royal palace and in select areas outside the city. He had made it so that the city's guards were significantly lacking in number, but still kept enough to offer resistance. He wanted the rebels to take the city, but he didn't want them to think they were walking into a trap. Earlier that day the rebels had taken the capital city and had converged on the palace. Battles had been taking place all over the planet for the past week but it wasn't until this day that the rebels had attacked the capital. Currently half the cities were under rebel occupation but after today none would be.

With Goten's prompting the rebels left the citizens of the city alone. Goten had reasoned that when they took the palace they would need people to work for them and the fact that his corporation was based in that city and didn't want his assets damaged. Varitech had agreed and ordered his men to only kill those that resisted against them.

Trunks smiled, this time outwardly, as he sensed several people approaching him from behind. First out from the main doors of the palace came Landyn, Brolly and his mother; Landyn with his yellow hair, Brolly with his greenish yellow and his mother with her blue. Landyn and Bulma stood on either side of Trunks as Brolly took his place just behind him. Several more people exited from the palace once they had gotten in place. Trunks had set this all up to look impressive, to show that he still held power. Kakkarot walked out with Chichi beside him. The latter had many ki pans orbiting around her. That sight scared the gathering more then just about anything else. Chichi was a monster with one pan, but with a dozen circling her all under mental control… she was unstoppable. With them came Videl with her one year old son floating beside her. Videl had been hesitant to bring Eyan along but everyone had assured her that he wouldn't be hurt. After all, a one year old 'Super' Saiyan was a daunting sight, not because he was evolved, but because he was born that way. Pan walked to her mother's other side and she was what scared everyone the most. Videl didn't understand why it was so. Around her family she was a loveable angel but everyone else seemed to fear her more then everyone else gathered combined. It made Videl worry but she didn't let it show. Kakkarot and Chichi took their place beside Bulma while Videl and her children stood beside Landyn.

From the mass of revolutionaries three people broke from the main group. Varitech, Goten and Vil'Tani floated down and landed a few meters away from Trunks. Varitech drew upon the presence of his army and Goten to gain the courage to deal with the fear of standing before so many enemy normal Saiyans.

Trunks stepped forward and smiled at Varitech, "So good of you to join me Varitech. Here to surrender?" Trunks asked.

At hearing this, Varitech inwardly snarled at his opponent, but kept his calm resolve; he was good at controlling his emotions, "Hardly Trunks. We've had it with your rule. You openly embrace an enemy of the race! That is intolerable, that man, no not man, that THING…" 

Varitech shouted as he pointed at Brolly, "Killed so many people, our people… my people, and yet you would openly let a murder like him walk around among us!" Varitech snarled out, "This is intolerable, and many others agree with me. We demand that you step down and let your betters ascend the throne so that the saiyan race may prosper the way it is supposed to!" 

Trunks smirked, "I think not Vary, I can call you that right? You do not understand what is going on, and until you do you should keep quiet and let me make the important decisions." Trunks said.

Varitech glared at Trunks and let the nick name slide. He couldn't respond to it with any force and have a hope to back it up, "It's your funeral Trunks." Varitech said.

Trunks smirked and crossed his arms across his chest looking much like his father, "You may want to rethink your words." Trunks said and a signal was fired up from the top of the palace. When it exploded, Varitech whirled around to try and ascertain the reason for that signal but as he did, a blinding white light that was seen half-way across the planet emitted. He didn't have to wait too long as the shield around the capital went down and hundreds of thousands of saiyans flew in and surrounded the rebel army from the outside while all the saiyans that had been hiding inside the palace rushed out to take their positions around said building.

Varitech looked around in dismay for a second before a grin split his face, _Oh well, just a slightly bigger crowd for my next card_. He thought before he turned back to Trunks. "I still see no need to take back my words." Varitech said, he had planned this next part out carefully. He knew with the army of Saiyans he had, that there was no hope of winning so he had made arrangements to get the needed fire power from other sources. When Varitech next spoke it was heard over the whole quadrant.

Varitech turned to address everyone and opened his arms wide as he started his oratory, "My people and fellow allies." This was what Trunks had been waiting for and he made a slight signal with the fingers of his left hand which were only visible to those behind him due to his arms being crossed. "Over a year ago a Super Saiyan attacked our planet. He devastated it, killing many of our people and destroying your homes. This Saiyan still walks among us today." Varitech turned and pointed at Brolly, "This man, no, this beast Brolly desecrated our home world and yet he is now one of the King's and the prince's closest consort. Why? I say it is because they had conspired with him from the beginning. The first rebellion had been ended for a little over a year during that time and many Saiyans were beginning to notice the horrible way King Vegeta was treating us in comparison to the other races out there. Vegeta got word of this and what do you know, not more then a week later one of our allied home worlds was destroyed. I do not believe it to be happenstance that this planet was destroyed. It was one of the places many of my fellow Saiyans were comparing to our home world and noticing the much better conditions. With the prospect of a war on the horizon we all forgot about the harsh conditions. We live for fighting so it is understandable for us to drop whatever we are doing at the prospect of a fight. This Saiyan then appeared here, on our planet, and devastated it. If you would notice that all the cities and locations that were destroyed were home to those that were the most disgruntled about Vegeta's rule." Varitech said, leaving the rank off this time. 

"I also have soldiers with me that said that those who spoke up about leaving Brolly alive 'disappeared' permanently and those others were threatened with the same. That's no way to treat soldiers that fought and died for our world! These reasons are more then enough to show that Vegeta and his son are unfit to rule!" Varitech said in a loud clear voice.

Trunks just shook his head in amusement, "Are you finished?" Trunks asked.

Varitech shook his head, "Trunks just asked if I was finished, no. I am not. I have more to reveal, secrets that they have kept from us, their own people, and from you their allies. If the atrocities of Brolly weren't enough, the ones committed by Gohan were just as bad. My good friend Goten revealed his brothers heinous acts. It may seem like betrayal but Goten revealed them in a bout of extreme emotions and one may say things they may not intend to in those times so he remains blameless. Due to his revelation the truth of what happen on Zyim came out. It wasn't destroyed by some asteroid with a special 'liquid' that hid it from detection. Gohan destroyed it. He committed genocide, destroyed the entire race. Why? I have no idea why, no one knows what goes on inside the mind of that psycho." Varitech said. 

Videl would have jumped out and strangled him if it weren't for the fact that they had anticipated this and her strangling Varitech would make the plan fall apart. "What I do know is that they didn't obey Vegeta's call to arms because they knew of the plot behind everything. Planet Vegeta wasn't in any danger because Vegeta had complete control over the beast Brolly. Gohan was sent there as Vegeta's lap dog to exterminate them, and exterminate them he did, every man, women and child." Varitech turned once again to address everyone, "Vegeta is determined to kill everyone that opposes his rule. He left his people, us, for some unknown reason to be gone for some unknown amount of time. I do not know why he has abandoned his people so soon after the devastation of our planet but I hope you all will see my view and not greet him back with open arms, but with what he deserves!" Varitech declared as he finished his speech.

The revolutionaries all raised their voices in a cheer while Goten and Vil'Tani beamed at each other. Varitech completely mistook the meaning being the smiles. Many of the saiyan warriors that had flocked to Trunks hadn't known of the full extent and many were beginning to doubt the reason for them joining the prince. There was a limit to how far their loyalty will allow them to tolerate, and genocide was something no one could tolerate.

Varitech turned back to Trunks and smiled, "I do believe your soldiers are having second thoughts about siding with you. I do believe many of your allies are having the same thought as well." Varitech said.

Trunks suddenly laughed, he threw his head back and laughed heartily startling everyone aside from those that knew the plan. "Bravo Varitech. You did your research well. You provided just enough truth to hide your lies in to make them believable. I commend you." Trunks said gaily as he smirked at the devolved Saiyan, "But you are sorely mistaken on many accounts." Trunks said.

Varitech raised an eyebrow, "Oh really? I don't think so little prince. You are just trying to cover your tail, just like your father." Varitech said.

Trunks snickered, "I really don't think so." Goten said startling everyone.

Varitech whirled to face Goten, eyes wide with surprise. Goten walked away to stand beside Trunks, Vil'Tani, needless to say, was right beside him. "You really do not understand Varitech. You only learned as much as we deemed necessary for you to know." Goten said with a smile on his face. 

"YOU BETRAYER!" Varitech screamed.

Goten laughed, "Betrayer? I don't think so. You're the one committing high treason, not me. I've been working with Trunks since the beginning and now that this rebellion is about to end… I don't see any reason to hide." Goten said with a grin.

Varitech eyes bugged open as Trunks began to speak, this time he was heard by everyone in the quadrant. "Much of what Varitech said was true, but he added lies that twisted and warped the meaning of those truths. Yes Brolly did destroy that home world on the way to planet Vegeta, but what Varitech failed to mention was that he also destroyed Hiamit, an allied planet whose conditions were far worse then those here. So that shoots that one thought out the window. I've been debating whether or not to reveal what I am about to say now or wait till my father got home but this incident gives me the perfect opportunity so I deem it is about time for everyone to realize what is truly happening. Brolly destroyed many cities and locations, yes but you do not know everything that he did. As Vil'Tani will attest to, as well as the Cerian race, Brolly came a split second from killing me and Goten in our old fortress. Would my father really allow that to happen if he had any control what so ever over Brolly at the time? No, he wouldn't. Not when I am his only child. Despite that narrow death escape he still nearly killed both of us a second time just south of Vegeta. Brolly had ambushed me, Goten, Chichi, Karie and Videl in the clearing in which Kakkarot's old house was situated. There he KILLED Chichi, brutalized me and Goten, badly injured Karie and killed Videl's unborn child. Do you really think we would support him after experiencing that unless that was a good reason? Brolly was the reason Gohan evolved to the second stage. That requires rage, and a lot of it. The kind of rage that is only exhibited when almost everyone and everything he has ever cared about has died or is on its deaths bed. Gohan supports Brolly, yet he lost the most out of that attack." Trunks said and slowly turned around as he said this next part to look at everyone, "Is insanity a crime? Must one be held responsible for that which he/she had no control over? The truth behind the attack is that it was not Brolly. It was his body, but there was another mind behind the attacks." Trunks revealed.

Varitech snorted, "Don't feed us this bullshit. Brolly was in full possession of his faculties when he attacked!" Varitech yelled.

Trunks looked at Varitech sadly, "No he wasn't. Those that survived all can attest to the fact that Brolly was wearing an amulet for the duration of the assault. Does he wear that amulet anymore? No he doesn't because it was destroyed; destroyed when it tried to possess Gohan. When Gohan evolved again and became what you consider 'super saiyan level 2' he ripped the amulet from Brolly's throat and threw it away. When that happened Brolly's personality took 180 degree turn. Gohan didn't care as you could imagine. He was so rage filled that he beat Brolly into the ground and would have killed him had not something happened. The amulet he had thrown away attached itself to his neck and took possession of him. With Gohan under the creatures command it attacked Vegeta and was going to kill my father when Gohan's mate, Videl, intervened and tried to get him to stop by telepathically communicating with him through their bond." Trunks said but was interrupted by Varitech yet again. 

"I can't believe this. You're telling us that an amulet had a mind of its own and was powerful enough to take over the minds of a super saiyan?" Varitech asked incredulously.

Trunks shook his head, "No I am not, and I will get to that part soon and if you interrupt me again I'll rip your tongue out." Trunks said as he continued his story, "As I was saying, the amulet wasn't sentient. It was merely a focal point for something else. A creature that is currently imprisoned used the amulet to take control of the strongest creatures it could find so that it could aid it in its attempt to escape. Anyway because of Gohan's love of his family, Pan and Videl, he was able to fight the monster for control of his mind, and won. When he won the amulet shattered and the creature was no longer capable of using it as a means of control."

Goten spoke up at this point and he too was heard by everyone, "Vegeta was curious why the Zyians didn't come to his call to arms so he sent Gohan to investigate. He was supposed to figure out why they didn't respond and that was it. Only it turned out to be a lot worse then that. Trunks and I snuck aboard his shuttle because we had been cooped up on Vegeta our entire lives and we wanted to see other planets. Apparently my brother got the information he needed, but it was nothing like he expected. The creature hadn't been content on controlling just Brolly. Apparently if the creatures are weak willed then all the creature needs to do is exert its energy upon them. The Zyians were even easier to control because their planet had an organic core, which meant it was living and the creature took advantage of that. It took control of the planet, and in doing so; she subverted nearly the entire race to her will. Gohan found someone that hadn't been subverted, a little girl, and gave his protection to her in exchange for information. The girl died because of my failure. The Zyians destroyed the shuttle we had arrived upon because they didn't want us to leave alive, or I should say the creature didn't want us to leave alive. The entire planet turned on us, and Gohan needed both his hands so he could defend us. He passed the girl to me and that is when she died. I wasn't able to save her and Gohan tittered on the boundaries of sanity because of it. Soon after, he went berserk and started blasting everything that attacked us. He wasn't going to lose me and Trunks like he lost the girl. When it became apparent that staying there and fighting would accomplish nothing Gohan gathered me and Trunks up and blasted out of the planets orbit and that's when it changed. Because the entire planet was organic it could be manipulated by the creature. The entire planet transformed and started to attack us. Gohan had no choice at that point but to destroy it. He couldn't let the same creature that had possessed him possess an entire race and planet. After that we left and he flew us home at speeds that exceeded warp." Goten said and looked down in sadness as he finished his part.

Vil'Tani put her arms around Goten and hugged him tightly. Goten buried his head into her breasts and sobbed quietly as Trunks took up where Goten had left off, "By that time Gohan and my father Vegeta had decided to aid Arthain, the 'legendary' evolved saiyan. To that ends they built a ship and headed to the old saiyan home world." This brought many gasps and stares of disbelief but Trunks continued, "Yes, the true home world of the Saiyans. We didn't originate from this world, we moved here after our old home world was devastated by a cataclysmic event. There they hoped to find clues on how to get Arthain's body back and that is where they went. Why do we need him you may ask? There are several reasons and I will tell them to you. The creature that caused all this is breaking out of her prison. In a few years the hole in it will be big enough to pass through and everything will end if we are not prepared to meet it." Goten turned to stare at Varitech, "Your plea for help to my fathers allies wouldn't have done you any good. The leaders of their nations knew of this already and have been preparing for as long as I have. The general populace didn't know for several reasons, one they didn't need to know. They would be far happier in general if they didn't know, and two many wouldn't be able to accept it. I say it's time for everyone to know. You all have to be aware sooner or later, and the sooner you learn, the more time you have to prepare and adjust to the news. This creature is a being of infinite energy by the name of Aerie. She went mad with power and devastated the old Saiyan world and the Saiyan race. Did you know that Saiyans used to naturally have yellow hair and teal eyes? No, I thought not. The backlash of Aerie's imprisonment devolved the Saiyan race. We are only now starting to recover what was long lost. That means she made you all lesser, weaker then you should be!" This caused grumbling among the saiyans. 

The thought of the 'Super' Saiyan status being denied to them by anyone got their blood boiling. Trunks almost had them all in the palm of his hand. "My father told me she would break free in approximately five years. This was just after Gohan returned from Zyim. It has been a little over 2 years since then which leaves about 2 to prepare, and prepare we shall! My father said he would try to be back a year before she arrived, to finish the preparations. And with him he will bring our greatest ally, Arthain! The most powerful Saiyan to have ever lived!" Trunks revealed, "Varitech claimed several things, one that Vegeta abandoned us. He didn't, he's off getting us our most powerful ally. You also know when to expect him back. As for why those soldiers disappeared. They died, my father killed them. I will say that straight out. But my father had a right to, especially when those soldiers were committing high treason by attacking him. Gohan did commit genocide, but by that time he had no choice, when the entire planet literally attacks you, you have no choice but to attack back and defend yourself as well as the ones you love. I'll finish on a note you will all find highly interesting. Did you all know that Varitech is the son of the former rebel leader Thraknor?" Trunks asked in mock curiosity.

Before the speech had ended the Saiyans with Trunks were glad they had stayed loyal and that there were good reasons for everything that happened. They were upset at being kept in the dark but the last statement knocked that out of the window. Every eye turned to Varitech as the revelation was made. Varitech's eyes widened in surprise and his mouth dropped. This was the last thing he had expected Trunks to say and it had caught him off guard. He had been so sure that his secret was safe that he had not been prepared when it was announced to the quadrant. The shock written all over Varitech's face was all the confirmation anyone needed. The rebel Saiyans stared at Varitech in disbelief, they couldn't believe that they had been duped.

Varitech tried to open his mouth to protest but he didn't get a chance as his own men grabbed him and slammed him to the ground. Trunks quickly stepped in to stop it, "I know you are upset about being tricked by this slime but do not kill him. I'll do to him what my father did to his, it's fitting after all. I don't want father and son close together so I'll send him off world. Varitech, you are hereby sentenced to janitorial duties on the planet of Thraknor. I'll have several hand picked men watch over you and distribute your duties to you. All those that followed him will be forgiven if they re-swear themselves to my father and to me when I succeed him." Trunks said.

The former rebel Saiyans were quick to comply. Their moral had been torn apart when Goten left them. With the true reasons behind everything finally out in the open the whole basis for the revolution was suddenly riddled with holes. Their foundation and their moral were suddenly gone so with the revelation of who their leader was any will to resist was quickly swept away.

As Varitech was taken away Trunks addressed the masses for the last time that day, and this time he was only heard by people on the planet "Now my people, we have much preparation to do for the fight ahead. For the first time we have ample warning and ample time to prepare for the threat against everything. Aerie doesn't threaten just us, but the entire universe, but we are SAIYANS! We are the greatest! We WON'T back down in the face of this adversary; we will rise up and show her what WE ARE MADE OF!" Trunks roared causing the masses to roar with him. Suddenly the air was alive as Saiyans shot this way and that heading to their homes so they could prepare for the fight.

Trunks and company turned and re-entered the palace. Once inside Trunks let out a big sigh of relief, "Whew, I don't want to do that on a daily basis." Trunks said wearily. He hadn't actually done any physical work but the tension had drained him thoroughly.

Goten nodded, "At least it's over. We can go back to pulling pranks, and I don't have to worry about someone trying to steal my mate." Goten said happily.

Vil'Tani looked at Goten in surprise, "Since when have you started considering me as your mate?" She asked curiously.

Goten scratched his head, "I don't know. It just seems to fit to well not to use. I really can't see me being with anyone else." Goten replied.

Vil'Tani smiled and kissed him on the lips, "Well you don't have to worry about anyone taking me away. Once you are ready I'm the one that's going to be taking you!" She said with a malicious grin.

Everyone laughed as Goten blushed redder then a tomato. "Oh hush up Vil. Not in front of the others." He complained.

Vil'Tani laughed out loud and soon was joined by Goten. With the threat of the rebellion over they were all able to laugh once more. Trunks stopped first as he regarded the two sadly, _I wonder… if I will ever find someone like that. Goten… I envy you… _I wonder… if I will ever find someone like that. Goten… I envy you…

  
----------------------------------

  
In the alternate reality…

As Trunks and Goten crushed the rebellion on planet Vegeta, Bardock found an entrance to a dragon lair. Bardock relayed the message by spiking his energy as high as possible before he lowered it and spiked it again. He repeated it twice more and suddenly Vegeta appeared beside him. 

"About fucking time someone found a lair, are you sure this is a dragon lair?" Vegeta asked. A roar resounded across the valley and a huge shape lifted itself out from a hole at the base of the mountain and flew away oblivious to the two saiyans floating in the air at the other side of the valley. Vegeta looked at the dragon and then turned back to Bardock, "Forget my question." He said and suddenly Gohan and Karie appeared beside them.

Bardock had to head nearly half way around the planet before he even encountered a mountain range. Fortunately for him that mountain range contained several dragon lairs. Bardock had used his life force sensing skills to probe deep into the earth and choose the lair that held the least dragons. It still held several hundred but it was far smaller then the other ones he had located. The largest lair had near a quarter million dragons. He really didn't want to test his endurance by taking on that many dragons.

This lair was in a valley deep inside the mountains. It was impossible to get access it any way other then by flight. The craggy peaks of mountains ringed the valley and although there are some passes most of them had been completely snowed in as they reached the extreme elevations. Bardock hadn't felt like going that high so he had just ploughed through the mountain after mountain taking stock of his position each time he exited one.

Gohan looked down at the entrance, "How many dragons are we dealing with here?" Gohan asked.

Bardock shrugged, "Not many, only a couple hundred." 

Gohan whirled around to stare at Bardock, "Are you serious? I feel that these dragons are stronger then Gahlanthas. This isn't going to be a walk in the park." Gohan remarked.

Vegeta snorted, "Gahlanthas thinks too highly of himself." He said.

Gohan nodded, "I agree but he is still powerful. He may not be as strong as he thinks he is but should he utilize his full rune magic he could have probably matched my brother and your son. I don't particularly like facing several hundred creatures that are stronger then Gahlanthas. Should Goten or Trunks fire an energy wave at me it wouldn't do much, but if they managed to fire several hundred… Well I would be feeling that one in the morning." Gohan replied.

Vegeta nodded, "Well then there is only one thing to do. Making our own entrance is out of the question. I don't know how fragile these eggs are. We'll hit the front and we'll hit it fast. We'll stick together and watch one another's back. When we find the eggs I want you to grab the smallest one Bardock. After that I say screw the entrance because we have what we need and we'll make our own exit. Karie, I want you to do that. Gohan and I will provide the fire power and protection for you two." Vegeta said and he began to rub his hands together. "This is the kind of fight I have been waiting for. Let's not keep our hosts waiting shall we?" Vegeta said.

The others nodded in agreement, grins of excitement creasing their faces. Four sonic booms echoed across the valley as the four Saiyans broke the sound barrier. They slowed down as they entered the cave but not by very much. The four rocketed past startled dragons as they flew down the huge passage ways. Suddenly several roars reverberated down the passage ways as the dragons warned each other of the intruders. 

"Well there goes whatever surprise we had." Vegeta yelled over the wind noise, "Speed and agility is what we'll have to rely upon until we get the eggs. I'm guessing we'll find them near the huge gathering of dragons ahead of us."

The others nodded and sped up. Suddenly the Saiyans found themselves weaving through the air as dragons shot out of the darkness to attack them. The Saiyans didn't bother fighting back; they would get more then enough soon. The Saiyans were dodging dragon attacks for several minutes when suddenly they blasted out into a gigantic cavern. It was here that the Saiyans stopped to look around and noticed the bad situation they were in.

They had found the eggs sure, but almost a hundred dragons were between them and their goal. Vegeta looked over at Gohan and grinned, "Let's plough the road Gohan." He said glibly.  
Gohan grinned and blasted forward with Vegeta close behind. Bardock and Karie didn't wait and were shooting off after the other two. The dragons shot forward to meet the Saiyans expecting and easy fight, they were wrong.

Gohan flew down and behind the first dragon where he grabbed the tail and flung it back into the on coming dragon wave. Most of the dragons swerved out of the way but one was not so fortunate and was knocked from the sky with the first. Vegeta didn't bother sparing their lives. A flash of light and a dragon disappeared in a haze of blood. A second and a third flash and two more followed the first. Gohan flew through the hole Vegeta had created had spin kicked another dragon in the face causing it to flip end over end until it smashed into the ground below.

Gohan watched as Vegeta shot past him to slam his fist violently through the skull of the dragon behind the first one and fired off an energy wave destroying the rest of the body. While Vegeta was busy with that dragon Gohan had shot past him and through the dragon behind him. The dragon had opened its maw to eat Vegeta only to find it eating Gohan who decided he didn't want to be eaten so he made an exit hole in the back of the dragon. The dragon screamed in agony and dropped to the floor like its clan members.

Gohan and Vegeta kept on doing this procedure of one flying ahead of the other until they finally punched through the wave of the dragons and flew towards the eggs. Bardock and Karie had followed close behind finding it difficult to keep up despite the fact that both Gohan and Vegeta were occupied most of the time with dragons. Vegeta grinned triumphantly as they rapidly approached the eggs but that grin was wiped away as the biggest living creature that they had ever seen moved to block their passage.

This dragon was a dozen times larger then the ones they had previously been fighting and the smallest of those dragons had been the size of a good sized house. Vegeta was determined not to be stopped, no matter the dragon size and kept on going. It wasn't until it spoke that Vegeta and the others stopped.

"Who are you!? Why do you invade our home?" The elder wyrm asked with a tinge of sadness and fear in a deep rumbling voice.

Vegeta remained silent for a second before he responded, "I'm Vegeta and that's all you need to know. I'm here for a dragon egg." Vegeta said.

The dragon's eyes narrowed, "Why!"

"This stupid elf Gahlanthas said we had to get a dragon egg if we wanted to summon a god. And so we are here getting an egg, it's nothing personal." Vegeta answered, "Now hand over an egg or we'll be forced to take them from you."

The dragon snorted, "I don't think so. You'll get one over my dead body, and none of you can hurt me." She growled.

A vein popped out on Vegeta's head, "Now listen here you overgrown…" Gohan put a hand on his shoulder.

"Let me handle this. She's right you know you can't hurt her. I can though, when I am at my maximum, but I would rather not kill her." Gohan said.

Vegeta snarled at grumbled but grudgingly let him speak. Gohan turned to regard the dragon, "I know the eggs are precious, they are your children after all, but we need one to protect our children as well. We are summoning the gods so we can get access to a vault they have hidden. Only they know where the vault is and it holds the body of one of my comrades and we wish to revive him. He is currently trapped in just his spirit form but should he get his body back he would help us protect our families. He is our hope because he was the strongest of our kind, and would be again should he be revived." Gohan said as he tried to reason with the dragon. Suddenly an idea occurred to Gohan, "The elf said that the gods would not take the items we use to summon them because they had no need for them. After we have summoned the gods and spoken with them we'll return the egg to you. The elf wants to keep it but no one should be allowed to own someone else so we'll just take it back from him. He cannot stop us."

The dragon stared at Gohan as she tried to determine if he was lying. Finally satisfied that he wasn't she agreed, "Yes, you can have an egg, one mind you, but I warn you if I sense any danger come of it you will find me breathing down your neck. I can track my eggs anywhere and be there within a few minutes no matter where it is on this planet! If you don't keep your word the might of my dragon clan will come down upon you and tear you apart. What you have witnessed here will be nothing compared to the storm I will visit upon you." She growled.

Gohan nodded, "I promise. I will protect the egg like it was my own." Gohan said.

The dragon nodded and flew out of the way. Gohan flew down and picked up an egg seemingly at random but he knew what he was doing. He was choosing an egg that was about half-way along in its development. The ones that were about to hatch would probably be a bad choice to pick and the elder wyrm would be very attached to the ones she had just laid. Gohan could feel the heat from the baby dragon residing inside pulsating outwards.

Gohan slowly floated up to the others, "I have the egg, let's just leave alright. The sooner we get back the sooner we can start summoning these gods and the sooner this whole business will be over." Gohan said and flew away in disgust. He hated Gahlanthas at that moment. Dragons weren't evil. They were probably more loyal and 'good' then he was. The thought that they could have talked their way through the dragons instead of killing so many upset him greatly.

The others didn't say anything and silently followed Gohan out. The elder wyrm watched them leave and sighed. Her egg was going to be in danger, she could sense it already, but she also knew it would not be because of anything those four had any control over. She would just have to be ready to protect her egg when the time came.

  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  
A day later…

Gohan and the others flew into the city with the egg much to the surprise of everyone. Gahlanthas was in a fury when he learned of their success. He had been so sure that they wouldn't succeed that he had already started to plan a congratulation party for himself. Alihvan smiled inside as her grandpa stomped out to meet the Saiyans. He was not happy and she could guess why. She suddenly found herself wondering why she was routing for the Saiyans instead of her own grand father. She then decided that it was because it was wrong of her grandfather to demand such hard tasks.

What the Saiyans didn't know and what they would never find out was the fact that the gods may have talked to them had they simply asked. Gohan's pure heart would be all they would need to know that their intentions weren't harmful towards them and their universe. Alihvan knew the Saiyans were working on a time schedule, and she suspected her grandfather knew as well. She seriously hoped that he didn't try to make them stay to long, for his own health.

Gahlanthas stomped outside just as the Saiyans landed on the platform. "How did you get that?!" He demanded.

Arthain laughed, "Oh if I had to guess I'd pick the usual way that they just used their hands to pick it up and carry it out." He answered.

Gohan laughed as well when he saw Gahlanthas get angry, "You are right, the dragon matriarch let us have one of her children on the basis that we return it to her afterwards. We WILL return it to her. I'm going to keep the egg until the summoning and then afterwards I'm returning it. If you so much as touch it I'm removing your hands" Gohan said in a clear, firm voice.  
Gahlanthas glared at Gohan, "I said the condition was that I kept everything you collected!" Gahlanthas said.

Gohan turned to Vegeta, "Fuck this old man, let's go find the gods the hard way. I can not take his bullshit anymore. Knowing him he will think up another 'quest' for us to accomplish and then another and have us running all over this stupid planet until we are forced to leave and go home. It would be much better to go and search for them on our own." Gohan said.  
Gohan's outburst surprised everyone, including the elder. Gahlanthas had no idea that Gohan would react in this manor; he had been the most reasonable and soft spoken of the bunch but this fire as not something he had expected out of anyone aside from Vegeta. 

Alihvan turned to glare at her grand father, "Grandpa, how can you do this to them? They are in desperate need to reach the gods and you don't care. All you care about is yourself! Is this what the great rune lord has been reduced to? A greedy old man who sits safely inside his palace fortress and uses others to do work he is too lazy to do himself? I can't believe you have become so insensitive to other peoples problems! What happened to the person I used to look up to?" Alihvan yelled at her grandfather and ran into the palace on what looked like the verge of tears.

Gahlanthas stared after his granddaughter in surprise, yet a second outburst that he had completely not expected. From everything he could tell he thought his granddaughter completely backed his decisions. Gahlanthas sighed and when he turned back to regard the Saiyans he had a different look in his eyes.

"Alright, fine. You can keep the egg and return it like promised. It's not like I could stop you anyways." Gahlanthas said, finally coming to grips that perhaps the Saiyans were stronger then him, "There is only one more quest for you to finish. Like my daughter had said I could have kept you running all over the world but we really only need one more item to summon the gods, and that is a summoning stone. We had one here a long time ago but it was lost to us. We need a new one if we are to summon the gods." Gahlanthas said.

Vegeta grinned, "Finally, the last quest. What is it so we can get started." Vegeta asked.

Gahlanthas nodded, "Alright, we need a block of the stone so we can start work on it. It can be found not far west of here. You should have passed over it, or one of your people, on your journey to find the dragons. It's in a valley almost directly west of here in the first mountain range you encounter. There will be a large black lake in the center of it with many large boulders surrounding it and protruding outwards of the lake. Those boulders are what we need. Just bring one back and we can start work turning it into a summoning stone. It'll take a few months but… It will be finished well before you have been here a year." Gahlanthas said.

Karie walked over to Vegeta, "Let me do this Vegeta. I know where he is talking about. I passed over it in the early stages of my search. It should only take me a day to get it and bring it back." She said, "Just take it easy okay?"

"A rest sounds nice, as does the food." Vegeta responded as he thought of all the delicious food. He had been living on raw meat for the past several months and while that sustained him it was hardly enjoyable.

Karie nodded, "Well, I might as well get going, so I can be back with the stone as soon as possible. Expect me when you see me." And with that she took off into the air and headed west.  
Vegeta approached Gahlanthas, "You care for your granddaughter a lot don't you?" He said softly shocking Gahlanthas yet again. This just wasn't his day.

The elder rune lord just nodded speechless. Vegeta just smiled sadly and left him there staring out over the city. Gohan and Bardock followed Vegeta into the palace as they waited for Karie to get back with the boulder required to make the summoning stone.

The next day a tired Karie arrived with a large boulder. The others could see why it would be used as a summoning stone. The entire thing looked like it was pulsating. It was a green stone that had what looked like blue veins running through it. Gahlanthas looked over it and nodded, "Yes, this will do fine. Just set it on the ground. We'll take care of it from here. It will take a couple of months to prepare the stone accurately. This kind of stone is resistant to just about everything." Gahlanthas said as moved his hand across the surface of the stone. 

"Thank you for the work you have done." Gahlanthas said softly, "I was hoping to study dragons but I suppose I can't have everything."

Arthain looked over at Alihvan and smiled. Gahlanthas had gone under a remarkable change, literally overnight, and he wondered if the elder had been 'helped' along in his changing.

Gahlanthas looked over at the five Saiyans, "You go relax. We'll handle this now. There are several things I wish to speak to the gods about so I will get something out of this at least." Gahlanthas said. After that the other rune lords joined him and together they used their magic to levitate the stone and take it with them as they entered the main hall deep within the palace.

Vegeta looked at the others and smiled brightly, "Looks like we'll get back in time to finish the preparations after all." Vegeta said happily and walked into the palace. He could relax now. All he had to do was to wait for the rune lords to finish their work on the summoning stone and then they were home free. One thing still bugged him though. What was the purpose of bringing Karie along with them?

To be continued…

  
Dragons have several levels… I'm not sure if I get this right but this is kind of like what it is for AD&D but regardless this is what it's like for my story. 

Dragon Egg (age 0 and below)  
Baby Dragon (Age 0-99) (Equal to a regular adult devolved Saiyan at maximum strength)  
Dragon Whelp (Age 100 – 199)  
Young Dragon (Age 200 – 399)  
Teenage Dragon (Age 400 – 699)  
Dragon (Age 700-999) (Equal to Goten and Trunks in strength at maximum)  
Adult Dragon (Age 1000-1299)  
Elder Dragon (Age 1300-1499) (Equal to Karie and Bardock at maximum)  
Wyrm (Age 1500-1799) (Equal to Vegeta at maximum)  
Elder Wyrm (Age 1800-2499) (Equal to Gohan at maximum)  
Greater Elder Wyrm (Age 2500+)   
Dragon God (Only 1 of these and she's been alive for over 100,000 years)

Dragons get more and more powerful as they age. Dragons are immortal, as in they don't die from old age, but they can be killed. They never stop growing and their scales get larger and duller as they get older. The bigger the dragon, the stronger the dragon. The Elder wyrm in my story could take out the capital of Vihn single handed because it's so powerful. Only Gohan would have a chance at beating that dragon. All the dragons they killed were at Dragon age and lower, the Adult and above dragons, they never fought. If they did they would quickly realize a single kick, punch, or energy blast wouldn't be enough to kill or defeat it, except with Gohan. Gohan would have to face an elder dragon or higher to have some trouble. There aren't many Greater Elder Wyrms because most dragons die before they become Elder Dragons. Once they get beyond that point not much on the planet can kill them. You may wonder how a dragon could beat the saiyans… well think about it. 2 foot thick magically reinforced dragon scales that is impervious to the elements? I'd say that provides quite the obstacle. (Describing an Elder Wyrm). Also they are highly intelligent and are proficient in ALL forms of magical attacks and defences. They also have the racial ability to see in the dark, to fly, and have breath weapons that are capable of razing entire cities.

I kind of expected the alternate reality part of my story to be longer but when I consider everything it's as long as I wanted it. If I had gone with regular chapter size it would have been 6 or 7 but I managed to fit it into 4 by making bigger chapters. There is one more chapter after this one and you do NOT want to miss it. Many things start to come together in the next chapter :).  



	21. Chapter 20: Death, Destruction and Chaos

A/N: This is what you've been waiting for a long time. Arthain gets his body back :). What a spooky chapter title huh? Makes you anxious to figure out what it's all about eh? Some of you may have an idea; I've sure as hell given enough hints throughout the story. Oh well, sit back and enjoy the carnage… err… show.

A/N: This is a very hard chapter to write… I'm shaking with so much excitement when I'm writing it that I can barely type. THIS is what I have been writing for. From this point on I really couldn't give two shits what happened before this, everything I wrote was just leading up to this and the succeeding chapters. The entire last story, the 19 chapters before this one… it's all just to prepare for these last few chapters. I know that may seem redundant but you don't understand so I'll try to explain what I mean. These last few chapters will express what I've wanted to express since I started to write. They are the reason why I started to write, just so I could write them. Anyways, enjoy it or not, I don't care because I'm writing here on out solely for my pleasure and I intend to love every word of it.

A/N: Thanks again to SSJ_ChibiGoten for proofreading this chapter for me.

**Chapter 20: Death, Destruction and Chaos**

The elders worked feverishly on the summoning stone almost day and night for two months. More runes were traced and drawn during those two months then most people saw in a life time. Vegeta at first was impatient by the delay but when asked to try to carve the stone down to a reasonable size himself he found he couldn't even crack the stone in the slightest, when he hit it with all his might. At that point Vegeta grudgingly admitted that runes magic could do some things he couldn't and he stopped bugging the elders. Eventually the Saiyans were able to see a difference as the rune slowly but surely gave way under the runes.

The Saiyans in the mean time decided to train. They couldn't use any technology aside from the regeneration chambers but that didn't stop them from training to get stronger. Soon the fights above the city became a daily occurrence as Vegeta, Karie, and Bardock fought against Gohan. The three never won because whenever Gohan started to lose he just went to his maximum and beat the other three into the ground faster then they could say shit.

The people in the city at first were scared and horrified by the brutality and power displayed during the fights but after a week they became used to it. When it became apparent that despite the beating the four remained best of friends and recovered seemingly overnight, they didn't mind. Although, they were getting annoyed at the rain of blood that the saiyans caused day after day the runes soon cleaned that up and the citizens were able to enjoy the fights. To them it became a regular fancy dance of lights and sounds. They didn't know why they felt the need to beat each other into a pulp but they also didn't care. It gave them a nice show to watch as they did their daily work.

The Saiyans did two kinds of training. They beat each other into a pulp over the city in the morning and used the late morning and early afternoon time to heal. Just before they went to bed they fought yet again, but this time they did it inside the palace. This fighting wasn't meant to increase their power, but to increase their skill, agility, and technique. They knew better then anyone what they were facing and were determined to be at their peak in every aspect when the time came.

During the 6 months that passed back in the reality from which they came, much had taken place. Bulma had surprised everyone by having a massive team of engineers and scientists create hundreds of thousands of gravity chambers. She had constructed several kinds from several gigantic ones that could fit several thousand Saiyans at a time to tens of thousands of personal gravity chambers. She wasn't a fighter, but she was going to make sure that those who were, got the best training possible. Trunks had whole heartedly agreed with her and started his own set of rigorous training sessions with Goten. The two of them fought in gravity chambers until they were on the verge of death. At that point they were rushed to regeneration chambers to heal and no sooner had the healing finished then they were back in the chambers. Originally gravity chambers had only been given to the royal family and those close to them but times change. The average Saiyan strength began to sky rocket from 20,000 into the hundreds of thousands as they finally had a way of increasing their strength dramatically in a short period of time.

By the time the summoning stone had been completed some extremely dedicated and determined Saiyans that beat themselves into the ground day after day began to evolve. Trunks was happy with the progress of his subjects. He wanted to show his father that he was capable of taking his place and was determined to present to him an army of normal Saiyans. Trunks smiled to himself in his study where he talked often with Goten and Vil'Tani. Trunks had been extremely busy. He was in his final year at the academy with Goten and Vil'Tani and he also had to train himself and deal with administrative details of governing the race. Goten had taken control of their corporation and was managing it fine; expanding it everywhere he could. Despite the preparation for war, people still needed to have fun and pulling pranks on one another had become the single greatest pastime in the quadrant. Goten and Trunks had talked about creating a tournament. Although, it couldn't be done like average fighting tournaments; but they did have the rough drafts ready.

Horial had, by this time, finished connecting every planet that had a civilization on it together with warp gates. The gates all linked to her home planet and from there one could take another gate to any other planet in the quadrant providing they had the proper papers. The cyan color was watched for closely by everyone in the universe. When it appeared in or on an organic life form that being was taken into holding and question thoroughly until the people were satisfied that they weren't under Aerie's control. Those that were under her control were only killed if her influence could not be removed. The planets that had organic cores were quickly destroyed. The people living upon them were relocated to a new spot and the planet was ground into space dust by planetary bombardments.

Most people had protested against the need for this, after all they only had the word of a child to go upon. Their protests were quickly silenced when a patrolling star ship found the rift a month after his speech. They barely had time to send out a distress beacon before they were destroyed. The place where the ship had been destroyed quickly became monitored and the rift was soon located and captured on film and picture. The pictures of a being of cyan energy tearing at it was quickly spread across the quadrant and all doubts about the creature were quickly removed. Fear increased at that point; there had always been hope that they weren't going to fight a being of infinite energy but one look at the tentacles lashing at the reality around the rift revealed otherwise.

The races combined every possible resource available on every planet in the quadrant to construct moon size star bases around the area of the rift. They had an idea when the rift would be large enough for the creature to rip through it so they didn't post too many ships on duty at first but as the time grew closer the number of ships in the area started to increase. Once a month the leaders of each race gathered together on planet Vegeta to discuss what they had done and what was left to do. It was more of a progress report then anything else. They all knew their duties and were doing them far more efficiently and quickly then anyone had dared to hope.

Trunks looked around; the sixth council meeting was just being adjourned. It had been like the others, just a progress report on what has already been happening. He wished that his father would come home. He was capable of handling this but he really didn't want to. He wanted to be out having fun with Goten, Vil'Tani and his other friends.

----------------------------------

In the main throne room of the royal palace in Vihn…

Vegeta rubbed his hands together in anticipation. The two months had finally gone by and the elders had said that the summoning stone was finally ready to be used. The throne room held all the elders. They were arranged around the summoning stone on one side while the Saiyans were on the other. Gahlanthas and Vegeta were facing one another across the stone from their position in the center of their group. The sword had been set into the top of the stone with the blade entering into it. The sword had easily cut into the surface of the stone showing that it could cut through just about anything. The egg was place in front of the sword in a small grove that had been carved especially to hold it. Other then those 10 only one other person was present during the summoning, but she remained hidden from sight and sense of everyone in the room. She would make the summoning work properly no matter what happened.

"Alright everyone, brace yourself, I will now summon the gods." Gahlanthas announced as he rolled the sleeves of his robe up.

Runes suddenly lighted up on his arms and hands as he began to trace runes in the air. The other elders followed suit and soon there were many runes twisting and spiraling around the summoning stone. Bright flashes of light began to accompany each rune as they were traced and sent to join the others that spiraled around the stone.

Arthain turned to talk to Vegeta, "Well, if this doesn't work at the very least we get a flashy light show." Arthain confided.

Vegeta frowned and replied, "It had better work, I spent way to much time and effort into this shit."

"Shut up you two, you are going to distract them!" Gohan hissed at them.

Vegeta shut up but was furious at being addressed like that. He could see the wisdom in the command so he didn't say anything further; he just made a note to explode at him later.

Suddenly an explosion sounded as a rift opened in the air 20 feet above the altar. Lightning crackled across the opening and from the darkness and lightning descended what they had all been waiting for, a god. The god stood twelve feet tall and had a commanding presence that made even Vegeta want to go down on one knee. The elders did just that but the Saiyans resisted, they knelt for no one except Vegeta, and Vegeta knelt for no one at all. The god was a being of pure energy but when Gohan sensed out his life force he was surprised. The god was weaker then he was. The only thing he had over him was his presence, height, and immortality. Gohan exceeded him in all other aspects. Gohan strained to figure out how such a presence could be emitted when he realized something else. He already knew, on a subconscious level. What he was feeling was just pure power radiating off the being and invading his senses. Gohan could emit even more energy then the god but he never realized the kind of presence he had when he was at maximum because he was usually to busy concentrating on something else.

The god wore pure energy. Nothing else could describe it. Waves of pure energy rolled off from his body and wrapped his legs and torso up. His arms and face was bear and white hair flowed down his back. The hair to was pure energy and moved like it had a mind of its own. The god looked at the people gathered before him for a moment before he spoke.

The voice wasn't loud, but it was penetrating. It also had a slightly electric distortion to it. 

"Normally I would not have come but I was asked by a fellow god who has been interested in your activities to reveal to you what you wish to know."

Arthain grinned, he had suspected all along and now he had the proof. Vegeta stepped forward and spoke, "So if you know what we need then we don't have to spend time explaining it to you, good. Mind telling us so we can leave your reality?" Vegeta asked.

The god smiled, "Ah, you have fire in you mortal. I find it refreshing to speak with someone who isn't afraid to speak his mind. You are definitely not like the cowardly mortals of this world that bow and scrape every time so much as a hint of us appear. It makes holding a rational conversation with them near impossible." The god said with amusement.

The Saiyans all laughed out loud, Arthain more then the rest. "Nevertheless you wish to get your companions body back? Well I do not need to tell you, the elders that sent you on the quests know where the vault is. Just describe it to him and he'll be able to lead you to it." The god said, revealing to everyone that all the effort they had gone through wasn't necessary. "Now if you do not have any more requests…" The god trailed off.

Gahlanthas stood up at that point, "I have a request." He said.

The god turned to regard him and beckoned him to go on, "What's going to happen to me? To my city? I try to look into the future but for some reason… I can't see anything anymore." Gahlanthas asked.

This question surprised many even the hidden observer. The god looked down at Gahlanthas and shook his head sadly. "You are trying to see something that will no longer exist through eyes that no longer see." That was all he said as he rose into the air and shot back up through the rift. As soon as the god had left the rift closed and the runes that circled the stone dissipated.

Gahlanthas stared up in confusion, "Does not exist? There is no way my city can be destroyed… That doesn't make any sense." Gahlanthas said.

Gohan walked over to him and put a hand on his shoulder comfortingly, "Do not worry; while I am here I will make sure nothing happens to it." Gohan looked back at Arthain, "Arthain, what does the vault look like?"

Arthain thought for a moment, "It looks like a really thin piece of metal. It's made of pure black rock and has powerful runes written all over it. There is a keyhole in the center of it where the key we brought with us should fit. The vault is actually in a pocket plane that the door leads to." Arthain explained.

Gahlanthas' eyes widened, "OH! That thing! We found it a long time ago in some underground cavern and brought it here. We tried to open it because we were rune users but without the key we couldn't. No matter what we tried the runes on the door foiled all of our attempts to open it. It's in our main treasure vault just behind the thrones in this room." Gahlanthas said, "Come, come, let us finish this. I want to figure out the meaning behind the god's words."

Gahlanthas and the other rune lords walked away and headed across the room. The others followed but Gohan stopped to pick the egg up. He had sworn to protect it and he wasn't about to back down on that promise. Twin, intricately designed, gold doors served as the entrance to the treasure vault. When Gahlanthas placed his hands and forehead on the center edge of the door it caused the runes to light up. Silently the door swung open to reveal mounds of gold, jewels and magical items and at the far end of the room stood the black door. It stuck out like a sore thumb in this room. Everything else was glittering and glowing while the door simply absorbed the glow.

No one was impressed by the room aside from Karie. Arthain had had access to far more then that back in the ancient days while Gohan, Bardock and Vegeta all had access to Vegeta's treasury and it also held far more, although it didn't have any magical items. When they reached the door Arthain turned to Karie.

"Do you have the plate and key?" He asked curiously.

Karie frowned, "I have the key but I gave the plate to Alihvan just before I went out to search for the dragons. I figured it wouldn't be a good item to carry around with me." She said.

Arthain smiled, "Good, good. Alright, put the key in the door and let's get my body back." He said excitedly.

Karie nodded, she wanted to feel how much power Arthain truly had, to see if he was as strong as he boasted. Everyone gathered anxiously around the two as Karie slowly put the key into the keyhole. Arthain stood beside her, almost trembling with anticipation at the event that was to occur. He had made sure he was just behind and to the right of Karie, for a very specific reason.

Karie turned the key and the runes on the door blazing brightly into light and disappeared. The door dissolved into nothing to reveal… nothing. There was nothing beyond the door, just empty black space.

Karie turned to look at Arthain in surprise, "I thought there was suppose to be something here…" She stopped as she saw the look on Arthain's face. The fear the suddenly enveloped Karie's face concerned everyone.

Karie what is it!?" Gohan asked in apprehension.

Arthain grinned maliciously at Karie, "Thank you so much for coming along but I'm afraid your journey ends here… You will serve a new purpose… for the rebirth of my body!" Arthain yelled and suddenly hundreds of tiny black tentacles lashed out from the darkness to wrap themselves around Karie. She screamed in horror as she felt herself dragged back into the darkness despite all her attempts to break free.

Arthain moved forward swiftly so that no one could interfere with this next crucial part. Arthain stuck his hand into Karie's chest and grabbed onto something, "This will only hinder things." Arthain said and yanked Karie's spirit from her body. The body shuddered and went lifeless and was pulled effortlessly into the blackness. Everyone stared in horror at what was going, frozen in shock and surprise.

Arthain smiled again at Karie, "No point in letting you float around as a spirit… time to give you your reward… OBLIVION!" Arthain roared as he used his spiritual energy to cause Karie's spirit explode. There was a soundless detonation and Karie cried out silently in agony.  The cry of agony wasn't heard through the ears, but by their souls. They cried out in horror at witnessing the worst form of torture that can be exacted upon anyone, the destruction of their very existence. Karie hadn't been killed; she had been erased from existence.

Arthain turned to address everyone, "Thank you so much for your efforts, I could not have made it this far without you. I shall reward you when I am whole." Arthain said and backed into the darkness. The door reappeared but this time the runes were much different. They all glowed bright red and dark blue as the process of recreation went on behind the door. Arthain's body hadn't been stored; the genetic instructions for making it is what had been stored. To bring that body back a female Saiyan was required. A male wouldn't work because males don't give birth, but females do. A rebirth of his body required a creature that was capable of giving birth, and hence Arthain chose the strongest female alive to be the mother of his body. 

Vegeta gawked in surprise, "HOLY SHIT! What the fuck just happened?" Vegeta demanded, completely clueless.

Gohan was just as clueless but then everything fell into place causing him to snarl in anger, "He fucking used us! He didn't give two shits about helping us; all he cared was getting his body back! He manipulated us into getting his body back for his OWN purposes, not for ours. He had no intention of EVER helping us! DAMN HIM!" Gohan yelled, upset at not having caught the treachery before it was too late.

Gohan collapsed to the floor, gently placed the egg beside him and began to hammer on the floor as he released his frustration. Bardock shook his head in shock, he couldn't believe it. He still couldn't accept what was happening.

Vegeta snarled and began to power up, "That fucking asshole! I'm going to make him wish he was never BORN! He had NO right to keep this from us!" Vegeta yelled.

The rune lords were looking at one another in confusion. They thought this was what they wanted but by their tones something had obviously gone very wrong.

Alihvan came running in a minute later. "What's going on?" She asked curiously and then looked around, "Where's Karie and Arthain?"

Vegeta turned to glare at her, "Karie is fucking dead, and Arthain USED us! He sacrificed her body to get his own and the detonated her spirit because it was 'inconvenient,' that fucking bastard!" Vegeta snarled.

Alihvan stared in horror at the door, "No… This can't be happening… Why? I thought he had changed… He seemed fine…" She whispered as she collapsed to her knees. 

Gahlanthas rushed over to her granddaughter and put his arms around her, "Don't worry, I'll make sure everything is alright." He whispered to her.

She looked up at Gahlanthas with tears in her eyes, "You don't understand… Arthain… He hates me… He hates us … He's going to kill everyone, and destroy everything… he never got over his grudge from the god war…" She said in a panic.

Gahlanthas looked at Alihvan in surprise, "What… You know Arthain? The God War? That was several thousand years ago…. Alihvan? Who are you?" Gahlanthas asked suddenly.

Alihvan looked up at him with sad eyes. She was about to respond when suddenly the door Arthain had entered began to buckle and crack. Suddenly it detonated and a power beyond anyone's imagination came into being causing everyone to freeze in fear. Hands gripped the edges of the door and Arthain stepped out from the inky blackness. A smile creased his face as he looked at everyone.

"Ah, it feels so good to be back in my body. You have no idea how much it sucks being trapped as a spirit, not being able to die yet not being able to live; being trapped as the door between life and death closes on you while you are halfway through. No matter, that is all done with now, and the wait was worth it. I feel so ALIVE!" Arthain said as he stretched his arms apart.

Vegeta had been about to blast Arthain when the door opened but when Arthain's power washed over him he felt fear like had never know before. The only thing that crossed his mind was, _'so this is what the Saiyans were like back then.'_ Vegeta was an insect compared to Arthain. Arthain hadn't been joking when he said Gohan was a candle compared to his bonfire. The presence he gave off made the gods appear like fruit flies.

Vegeta snarled and reinforced his resolve with the image of Karie's death. "ARTHAIN! How DARE you use us like that! I TOLD YOU TO TELL ME EVERYTHING LIKE THIS!" Vegeta roared snapping everyone out of their paralysis.

Arthain turned his gaze to Vegeta and smiled, "I really don't think so you pathetic weakling. Saiyans have an unspoken code am I right? Those that are weaker must defer to those that are stronger? Since I was the strongest I had no reason to tell you anything. I only revealed what I wanted because I enjoyed the expressions it created, nothing more." Arthain said, "One thing I forgot to mention… Insanity is contagious, especially when it's conveyed through the bond. I not only receive a portion of my mate's power, but her emotions and thoughts as well! Our bond was much stronger and more intimate then anything you could ever imagine! The only difference between me and her is that she is suffering from her insanity while I revel in mine! I know where she went wrong when she absorbed the world crystal. I don't intend to make the same mistake!" Arthain finished with a crooked grin.

Gohan's eyes widened, "NO! You would not dare!" He said in shock, he knew exactly what Arthain was talking about, the Cerians.

"Wouldn't I? Aerie will either accept me by her side… Or I will throw her down and take her place!" Arthain declared. Arthain glanced behind them and smiled at Alihvan, "So the daughter lived after all. My poor dear, it's a shame you didn't recognize me, your parents killers, until it was too late." Arthain mildly said.

Alihvan stared at Arthain in fear, "No… I recognized you. I just gave you a second chance… I thought you could change, I thought you had changed when I saw you with someone as pure as Gohan… I was so wrong…" Alihvan said in a broken voice.

Arthain nodded thoughtfully, "Yes I suppose that makes sense, he was the perfect cover now that I think about it. Oh well it doesn't really matter no does it? You are the only immortal goddess that has ever been born by reproduction. I thought I had killed you but I see I was mistaken, oh well I can rectify that easily enough. If you'll be good enough to hand over the plate I can get started, I do have an engagement I must keep after all." Arthain said in a light tone.

The Saiyans were staring at Arthain with a mixture of horror, shock and surprise. Vegeta took a step back, "No… what have I done… I have aided in the revival of… No… I won't allow it… I WILL NOT ALLOW IT!" Vegeta roared as he powered up in rage, "YOU TRICKED US YOU FUCKING BASTARD! I WILL MAKE YOU PAY! YOU WON'T LIVE LONG ENOUGH TO MAKE IT TO MY REALITY! I WILL KILL YOU HERE!!" Vegeta roared as he exploded into rage. The thought of being used to destroy everything he had worked so hard to protect sent him over the edge and he arched back as he exploded into evolution. The shockwave knocked Bardock back and forced Gohan to cover his eyes. All of the rune lords disappeared and reappeared behind Alihvan as she erected a barrier to protect them. Arthain merely smiled and didn't bother with any form of protection. The vault didn't have any such protection or much luck. The runes on the vault strained and buckled under the pressure being released before they finally collapsed and exploded outwards as Vegeta finished his transformation. Gohan had covered the egg with a shield to prevent it from damage.

The explosion was seen all over the city and panic started to spread. Never in the history had the palace ever been attacked yet now part of it had just exploded. The runes in the city flew towards the disturbance bent on stopping whatever was causing the damage.

Gohan looked from Vegeta back to Arthain and he snarled as he too exploded into evolution. Bardock was once again thrown to the ground and what was left of the vault exploded outward sending chunks beyond the city limits. Bardock quickly regained his feet and took this as his cue to power up like his companions; he had a score to settle with Arthain, just like them. Arthain threw his head back and laughed.

"You think you can stop me? I don't think so!" Arthain said and laughed as if he had just heard the funniest joke of all time.

"They may not be able to alone! But they are not ALONE!" Alihvan shouted as she stood up.

Suddenly she blazed into her full glory as her body exploded and all that stood before them was a being made up of pure blazing eldritch runes. The rune lords all gasped in shock as their goddess had suddenly revealed herself to them. Suddenly the sky darkened and split open as a huge rift appeared. Several other gods and goddess started to descend from the heavens to aid their friend in battle. Suddenly a roar was heard off in the distance causing everyone to turn to the east. Soon a second roar was heard as it echoed across the land and the cause of the noise came into view. The elder wyrm had sense it's young in danger and had come like it had promised; only it wasn't alone either. A huge wave of dragons followed her as she descended upon the city.

Gohan smirked at Arthain, "Looks like you are slightly outnumbered. I suggest you give up and die peacefully!" Gohan snarled.

Arthain looked over at Gohan and smirked, "Only small nuisances. Unless you can somehow convince the entire pantheon of the gods to do battle with me I really don't care what you throw at me." He said with a smirk.

An explosion was the only warning anyone had as Vegeta shot forward and planted both of his feet into Arthain's face. Arthain was sent flying away, not being fully prepared for the assault. Arthain was ready for the next attack and easily dodged Vegeta's assault. Bardock blasted forward to join his king in combat but without breaking beat Arthain smashed him in the face just before he kicked him into the city below. The runes that had flown towards the palace quickly found themselves being redirected to swirl around Alihvan as she snarled at Arthain.

"Arthain! I'll make you PAY! I thought you would have learned your lesson! But I guess not!" Alihvan snarled as she stepped forward, the other gods and goddess with her.

Gohan turned to Tixx, "Protect the egg. Arthain is the one that is causing the entire disturbance so the dragons will attack him. If they ask for it, give it to them, do not even hesitate, they are not in the mood." Gohan said and blasted off to help Vegeta who was losing badly.

Arthain grabbed Vegeta by the leg and threw the king into the ruined palace causing the runes holding the walls up the flash and collapse taking some of the palace down with him. Arthain turned to meet Gohan's fist with his face. He merely smirked at him before he slammed his elbow into Gohan's stomach and spin kicked him away. Suddenly a dragon clamped down on his arm and bowled over him as the dragon slammed into him. Arthain merely smiled and sent a torrent of energy through the dragon that didn't stop with just that one dragon. Every dragon behind the one that had attack Arthain found themselves being torn apart by the energy wave. 

A complex set of runes slammed into Arthain's back rocking him forward to meet the onslaught of gods. Eldritch bolts of energy and waves of fire and lightning rippled over him as the gods threw their power at him. Arthain just started to laugh and kept on laughing as he fire energy blasts every which way. He didn't care what he hit; he was enjoying his new found life. The people below in the city found themselves running for their lives as many of Arthain's energy blasts slammed into the city destroying huge portions of the city.

The gods backed away on shock, their powers had done nothing but make Arthain laugh. Suddenly Arthain found himself bombarded from all sides by lightning, fire and acid as the dragons let loose their breath weapons. The gods added their might into as well and began to throw spells of cataclysmic proportions at Arthain.

Comets flew from the atmosphere to slam into Arthain as torrents of fire rose from the deepest parts of the abyss. Physic blows powerful enough to crush mountains and words of power said with mind crushing force were slammed into Arthain. Arthain just snarled in anger, his humor and enjoyment suddenly gone as he felt these attacks slam into him. His attackers may not have sent the entire pantheon of the gods at him but they had thrown the closet thing. Arthain arched backwards and exploded in anger and power. When Gohan and Vegeta had evolved they had sent out a single wave of relatively weak energy in all directions. Arthain sent out huge concentrated energy waves towards specific locations. It looked like he released a single wave of energy at first but that changed as the energy drew away from him. The gods, dragons and the city, by accident, felt the force of Arthain's rage.

"PROTECT THE GODDESS!" Gahlanthas roared to his fellow rune lords as he quickly dashed in front of Alihvan and he erected a barrier to protect her and was quickly joined by the other lords.

Alihvan stared in horror at them and stretched her hand forward pleading to the rune lords to stop, "NO!" She screamed as the world turned white.

The city disappeared in a roar of fire and death as everything crumbled into ash and the walls blasted outwards. The only thing that was left standing was the floating palace which was already severely damaged. The energy waves washed over the flight of dragons and their screams of agony were heard all over the country side as the dragons died by the hundreds. The sky rained blood that day as the decimated bodies of nearly a thousand dragons fell from the sky at the same time, lifeless and bleeding. The few remaining dragons rallied around the elder wyrm but their numbers had been reduced to a few dozen and they hadn't even gotten the egg back, not that there was any egg to retrieve anymore.

The gods had received the worst of the assault. They were the strongest, but they also bore the brunt of Arthain's anger and hatred. What made their deaths even worse was when they died they set of explosions with magnitudes equivalent to what was required to kill them. Their screams joined those of the dragons but theirs were not heard just across the country, but across the entire universe. The death of a single god or goddess is a major incident; the death of dozens is cataclysmic. When the gods died they exploded as the energies that had made up their being were released and the landscape was forever altered.

As the bodies of the gods fell from the sky all Alihvan could do was watch in horror as her friends died and witness the devastation their power wrought upon the land. Everything in a hundred kilometre radius was altered as lands fell below sea level while others rose into the sky to form mountains. Lakes of lava and water alike began to dot the landscape as the power of the gods tore through the crust of the planet. The country of Vihn disappeared into the annals of history that day as virtually every living creature that had lived inside its borders died when the gods fell. Alihvan alone had survived but was severely weakened. The rune lords were all dead, including Gahlanthas. They had thrown themselves in front of Alihvan and erected their strongest barriers to protect her, and died. Although they died their deaths were not in vain. Their deaths had weakened the blast just enough for Alihvan to survive but she was still badly hurt by it and could no longer aid the Saiyans.

Suddenly there was an energy spike that caused Arthain to whirl around in surprise; it was more powerful then what he had just fought off. 

"DARKNESS ETERNAL!" Gohan and Vegeta roared at the same time from their position beside each other hovering just a little above the ruined palace platform. 

The twin energy waves that blasted out from Gohan and Vegeta twisted and spiraled around one another until they slammed in Arthain who was forced to cross his arms in front of himself to brace for the assault. The palace platform couldn't take anymore. The backlash from Gohan's and Vegeta's attack slammed into and demolished it. The platform turned into rubble as it was obliterated. Later people would find chunks of it several hundred miles from its original location. 

Arthain snarled in anger as the energy wave kept hammering into him. He couldn't believe two evolved Saiyans could cause him this much trouble and it angered him. The attack wouldn't kill him, or even seriously hurt him, but the fact that it could hurt him even a little made him go ballistic.

"YOU WANT TO SEE POWER! FINE YOU WILL SEE FUCKING POWER! PREPARE TO DIE YOU STUPID SHITS!" Arthain roared in rage held his left hand forward. Suddenly the energy wave wasn't hitting him but was being absorbed by him. Arthain's eyes grew brighter and brighter as the energy built up inside of him. This continued for some time until all you could see of Arthain's eyes was a bright yellow light.

When the energy wave finally abated Gohan and Vegeta stared up at Arthain in horror. He stood before them in all his glory completely unhurt by their attack, but what was worse was the fact that the energy from their attack was held inside of Arthain.

rthain snarled down at Vegeta and Gohan, "RIGHT BACK AT YA!" He roared and sent the energy from their attack from his right hand directly back at them. What made the attack even worse was the fact it wasn't just their energy. Arthain had enhanced it with his own life force causing the amount of energy to double.

Gohan and Vegeta looked at each other and horror and dodged out of the way and watched as the attack flew past them, drilling into the planet and almost reaching the core before it exploded. Lava exploded up from the hole made in the planet and started to gush to either side. Gohan and Vegeta looked up to regard Arthain in horror; their attack had done absolutely nothing except show how badly out classed they were. What made things worse was that they were both incredibly tired. They had poured almost all of their life force into their attack and it had all come to naught.

Bardock floated up to join them, just as tired as they were but badly wounded in addition. He couldn't take the hits Arthain dealt out very well.

Arthain looked down at them and smirked once more, "Ah, look at you now. You poor babies are all tired and here I am barely warmed up." Arthain said with a laugh. He stopped for a second and then burst out into even more laughter. "To think you actually thought you had any chance of beating me. I am the strongest being to have ever LIVED! I intend to STAY that way, FOREVER!" Arthain roared out in rage, his laughter and amusement gone in a second. The ultimate Saiyan looked down at Alihvan and blinked in surprise, "Oh my, you're still alive, what a pity. You seem to have more lives then you know what to do with." Arthain said his amusement back once more. "It really is a shame that you lived. It just means that I have to hurt you even more now. Oh well, your choice, not mine. You really can't blame me for this. It's your fault for not dieing." Arthain said as he started to laugh when suddenly he glared at her, "I have the perfect death for you. The gods go to a nice little ol' place when they die. But I won't give you that luxury. You are going to get nothing but OBLIVION for being so god damn fucking persistent. You're like a fucking cockroach, you won't just die!" Arthain growled in anger.

Alihvan started to float backwards, staring at Arthain in fear. One didn't need to see a physical face to know that is what she was feeling; it was rolling off her in waves. Arthain smiled at her, "Don't be afraid little one, I'll make it as painful as possible. I swear you won't feel it for too long, although you'll probably think it is to long by far… but meh, oh well not my fault, all yours… NOW DIE!" Arthain roared as he whipped an arm up and fired a massive energy blast at Alihvan. Alihvan shielded her face and prepared to die, there was nothing in her reality that could stop it. 

Gohan watched in horror as the blast shot towards Alihvan, everything seemed to be slow down as Gohan became lost in both the past and present, no… not again… not again… I can't let her die, I can't bear to see it… oh god… I… I can't… I can't take it… help me… I'm… going to… to… AHHH! "AHHHHH!!!!" Gohan roared in a god like voice as he shot forward faster then he had ever before in his life. An instant later he was staring directly at the energy blast as it rocketed towards Alihvan. Gohan shoved his hands forward and began scream in rage, anger, sorrow and fear as the energy blast slammed into his upraised hands.

A roar unlike anything that had ever been heard before echoed across the planet as Gohan screamed, in rage. He stared at Arthain hidden behind the energy blast with insane primal rage and kept on screaming as his energy sky rocketed beyond anything he had thought possible. Alihvan was knocked backwards from the waves of force that were being emitted from Gohan but was able to halt her momentum before she had gone too far. She stared at Gohan in surprise and horror as the reality around him began to shift and warp as he began to evolve. Lightning shot out from the clear sky, the ground and the air around him to seemingly lash out at him in anger. All it did was add fuel to the fire that was burning inside Gohan. Gohan's hair grew long, very long, and stretched all the way down to his thighs as his eyebrows disappeared and became hard lumps. His muscles bulked up as the energy that rippled through him caused them to grow bigger and denser. With another yell Gohan spread his arms wide and crushed the energy blast between his hands and floated there glaring at Arthain.

"NO ONE WILL EVER HURT HER AGAIN!" Gohan roared as he shot through the smoke and fire directly at a very surprised Arthain. At the same time thousands of spatial rifts began to open in the sky around him as the entire pantheon of the gods came to fight Arthain. It was one thing to kill gods, it was another to threaten the very existence of the planet or the world crystal and he had nearly destroyed both when he fired Gohan's and Vegeta's energy wave back at them.

What surprised Arthain the most was that it wasn't just the gods that joined the fray. Beings of even greater power came behind them, the creators and 'the' Implementor of that reality came to kill him. Arthain snarled in anger as he easily blocked Gohan's fist. Even though Gohan had evolved yet again he was no where near Arthain's level. The creators were though, and the Implementor was even stronger then he was. He wasn't going to stay any longer.

Arthain smashed his fist into Gohan's face to get Gohan off him. Arthain shot forward and kneed Alihvan in the stomach and quickly grabbed the plate from her before blasting away. Alihvan doubled over and fell from the sky; her energy completely drained but before she hit the lake of lava below one of her fellow gods caught her. A few seconds later as the gods, creators and the Implementor started to chase a bright flash lit the sky from the south and suddenly the gate pillar exploded. Arthain had gone back into the saiyan reality but he had destroyed the gate afterwards.

The elder wyrm and the remaining dragons decided to pull out at that point. They had lost the egg, along with the majority of the dragon clan. On top of that the gods had appeared and they didn't want anything to do with them so they quietly left.

Vegeta cursed, "FUCK! Nothing has turned out according to plan! What the hell was the whole point of this anyway! God damn it! Fuck!" Vegeta cursed as he stood floating there. 

Gohan stood floating there in rage, his quarry had escaped him and he was furious. He would hunt Arthain down until he was killed. "Shut the fuck up Vegeta!" Gohan yelled at him, "I am NOT going to let Arthain get the fuck away with this! I am going to hunt that son of a bitch down and I will make him BURN!" Gohan bent forward and roared out with anger.

The Implementor suddenly appeared before the Saiyans startling all of them. He was huge standing nearly a hundred feet tall and was composed of pure energy. YOU WISH TO GET BACK TO YOUR REALITY DO YOU NOT? The Implementor said through telepathic communication. The voice boomed in the Saiyan's skulls making them feel as if it was about to explode.

Gohan snarled back, "I would figure THAT one was obvious!" Gohan snarled.

The Implementor turned to regard Gohan with disapproval, I DO NOT LIKE YOUR TONE OF VOICE, BUT I ENJOY YOUR PRESENCE HERE EVEN LESS! I WILL SEND YOU BACK ON THE PROMISE THAT NO ONE FROM YOUR REALITY WILL EVER COME HERE AGAIN! The divine being boomed.

Vegeta snarled, "You got yourself a fucking deal, now send us home! Back to this world in my reality!" Vegeta demanded.

"Wait…" A voice said, startling everyone except the Implementor, he already knew what she wished.

ARE YOU SURE? The Implementor asked Alihvan.

Alihvan nodded, "I have to get back at Arthain… He has killed everyone dear to me… including the grandfather of my mortal form…" She replied.

The Implementor nodded AS YOU WISH! He boomed and gently picked Alihvan up with his mind and tore a hole in reality. He then gently took her through the rift and placed her on the old saiyan home world. With the Saiyans he simply threw them through the rift, not caring if they got hurt in the process. REMEMBER YOUR PROMISE! The Implementor boomed to Vegeta just as the rift between the two realities closed.

-------------------------------

Back on the old saiyan home world….

Vegeta grumbled as he stood up, "The stupid asshole could have been gentler." Vegeta complained.

Gohan snarled at Vegeta, "Shut up, at least we are back. Now let's gather your men and let's get home! It'll take that pathetic ship nearly a year to get there and who knows what Arthain will do in the mean time!" Gohan growled.

Vegeta snarled at Gohan but Bardock intervened, "Ok you two, enough! We have to think rationally if we are going to beat Arthain. It was just proven that brute strength won't be enough to beat him! We need to use our brains!" Bardock said.

Gohan shuddered and took a deep breath too calm himself down. It took several minutes but after that both Vegeta and Gohan were fine. Neither had powered down though. They had each made a silent vow to stay that way until Arthain was beaten.

Alihvan approached the others; now back in her human form, "I'm coming with you. I have just as much reason to want him dead as you. I've never wanted to kill anyone before but I think I'll make an exception." Alihvan said fiercely.

Vegeta nodded, "Fine, come with us then. Maybe you can use your runes to speed the stupid ship up a little." Vegeta said and put his fingers to his forehead. After a little searching he found what he was looking for and disappeared. Bardock put his fingers to his forehead and did the same. Gohan walked over to Alihvan and put his hand on her shoulder before they too joined Vegeta and Bardock back at the saiyan base camp.

The saiyans were surprised when four people suddenly appeared in the very center of their camp. They were even more surprised at the transformations of Vegeta and Gohan. The commander of the ground troops ran out to Vegeta and saluted him.

"Welcome back Vegeta! What can we do....? What happened?" He asked.

Vegeta glared at the commander, "We were used that is what fucking happened. Arthain used us and obliterated Karie to get his body back! Now he's on his way to become the very thing we are going to fight! There's going to be two fucking infinite power beings in our universe!" Vegeta snarled out causing the eyes of every Saiyan within hearing distance to pop out, "Now I want everyone back on the ship with the next 15 minutes or you are getting left behind! We need to get to planet Vegeta NOW!" Vegeta roared and the camp suddenly burst into motion as everyone began to pack up. Not a minute later the first shuttle lifted up and headed back out to the star ship that orbited just outside the planet's atmosphere. Vegeta, Bardock, and Gohan carrying Alihvan blasted into the sky and followed the shuttle.

When Vegeta and company had boarded the star ship Vegeta stomped over to the bridge with the other three close behind. Once in there he signaled the crew to start the take off procedures.

"We are leaving once all those shits down below on the surface get up here! In the mean time send a message to everyone one of our fucking allies…"  Vegeta began.

The communication offer cleared his throat causing Vegeta to stop and glare at him, "Ahh… my liege. We can't do that. We didn't install any long range communications because this ship can outrun any communication we send. It would be faster for us to just take the warp stream to wherever you want to send the message." The officer said nervously.

Vegeta snarled and slammed his fist on his chair, "FUCK! What else can go wrong! I can't believe this, are our warriors fucking back yet?" Vegeta demanded.

The officer shook his head, "No sir, they're still arriving. Some decided to bring back some of the technology we had found down there so they may be cutting it a little close to the time limit you gave them." He replied.

Vegeta grumbled but didn't say anything. "What have we got so far?" Vegeta demanded.

Another officer spoke up at this time, "Lot's, most of it was decayed beyond use but there was just so much of it that we were able to salvage a substantial amount. We also found some visual records from back then. We aren't able to play them as of yet, lacking the required technology, but we are currently working on that problem. I'm also sure that your mate would be able to figure it out in no time." He said.

Vegeta nodded, his temper had cooled a little. The thought that the expedition wasn't a complete loss made him feel a great deal better. Gohan took his place in his seat just below Vegeta while Bardock sat beside the pilot. Alihvan didn't know where to sit so she just leaned against the wall by the door. The ship scared her. She had never seen something like this before. Technology was a completely foreign concept to her and she had a feeling she would have to get used to it.

Vegeta looked over at Bardock, "How are we going to get through the nebula? Have you any thoughts?" Vegeta asked.

Bardock checked the sensors for a moment before he looked up at Vegeta, "I think we should just go through the gigantic hole Arthain tore in the nebula. Apparently it's extremely volatile and a large portion of it exploded when Arthain flew through it." Bardock answered.

Vegeta smiled, "The asshole finally did something useful for us. Everyone, tell the people down below to forget whatever they are taking and get up here now. I want to be gone in one minute!" Vegeta declared.

The communication officer nodded and relayed the message to the surface below. The Saiyans down there dropped what they were doing and boarded there shuttles. When the last of the shuttles had re-docked with the mother ship Vegeta gave the signal and the star ship Arganon turned around and blasted out through the hole in the nebula. When they exited the nebula the ship entered the warp stream and began its journey back to Saiyan home world.

Once they had successfully entered the warp stream Vegeta stood, "I'm going to do some training. Do not disturb me until we get back to planet Vegeta." He said and left the bridge. Bardock followed suit, voicing similar thoughts. Gohan got up to do the same but Alihvan stopped him.

"Umm… What am I suppose to do? I don't have any room… or any clue about anything here." Alihvan said with trepidation and panic in her voice.

Gohan smiled sympathetically, "Alright let me take you on a tour of the ship. I'll get you a room and show you how to work everything." Gohan said as he lead Alihvan out of the bridge of the ship.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A week later…

Arthain entered the atmosphere of the planet. He was hungry or he would never have stopped there. When he reached the surface he looked around with eyes filled with madness.

"Well, what have we here… A nice peaceful planet… It would be a shame if anything… happened to it." Arthain said to himself and started laughing uproariously.

An hour later a golden glow was seen leaving the planet. A few seconds later the planet exploded and all life upon it was extinguished.

To be continued…

Whew, I LOVED that chapter. It totally did not turn out how you expected eh? Arthain, just as insane and crazy as Aerie. There had been hints before, you could have picked up on it but many probably didn't because they thought it was going to be like the usual run of the mill self-insertion. Oh no, I'm playing the part of the bad guy, kind of hehe. :)


	22. Chapter 21: Love and Rage, Death and Ash

A/N: Alright, this chapter has a bit of a tenser breaker at the beginning… You may want to skip the first part of the chapter if you are reading this and you are under age. Oh just so everyone remembers, Goten and his family only wear battle armor when there is a war to fight or some powerful foe. For stuff like the academy or just regular days they wear the clothing they had on in the series, although a different color. But man… I think it's my best sex scene yet. I may have used 1 or 2 vulgar terms in the entirety of the entire thing and the ones I used were the… least vulgar ones I could possible use for it. :).

A/N: Thanks again to SSJ_ChibiGoten for his help editing my story. He seemed to take special joy in critiquing the sex, I wonder why… hmm… Oh well. He has my thanks none-the-less.

**Chapter 21: Love and Rage, Death and Ash**

Six months have passed, since the party of Saiyans and an unconventional form of a goddess had been violently thrown out of the parallel reality and back into their own. During that time preparations for the up coming battle had nearly been completed. Although this was good, disturbing news had been filtering in during those six months. Planets have been disappearing and with them a few of Trunks' allies. People were starting to get nervous wondering if perhaps there was another enemy they had to deal with in addition to the creature.

The strangest thing was that there was no order to the planets disappearing. No rhyme or reason to it. Planets would seem to disappear at seemingly random times and places. This was confusing to say the least, but one thing that the leaders had noticed was; although not steadily, the warpath was heading in the direction of Cerian Prime. It was as if the person destroying the planets was completely insane but despite that he/she/it knew where they wished to end up and was merely taking their time to get there. 

The Cerians were getting prepared for whatever was coming towards them. They had pulled the majority of their fleet back to their home world and many others had pitched in to help with the defense. The majority of the alliance was still gathering at the rift in space and time despite this.

Back on planet Vegeta everything was going according to plan. The saiyan race was getting stronger at an incredible rate and Goten and Trunks were still stuck in the academy.

Goten sighed as he sat through yet another lecture. He really wished the class would end. He was so incredibly bored. Goten turned to look out the window for what must have been the hundredth time that period and sighed yet again. Exams would start soon, signaling the end of his third year at the academy. Only one more and he could leave the stupid place behind. Goten and Vil'Tani continued to have the same classes year after year, not that he minded.

Vil'Tani was just as bored as Goten. She sat beside him at the back of the class balancing a pen on her nose. She sighed and blew some of her hair out of her face as she caught her pen. Vil'Tani leaned over and whispered to Goten, "When will the bell go? This guy is so boring! The other Instructors at least have the decency of making the lectures fun by swearing or cracking jokes or something. This guy just keeps talking on and on in his stupid monotone voice!" Vil'Tani complained.

Goten smiled at her absently, "Ya… I know how you feel but you say that every day. We'll make it through this one like we did the others." Goten said as he tried to placate Vil'Tani.

Vil'Tani just pouted at him. Goten laughed silently and kissed her on the lips, or tried to. He suddenly stopped and jerked back, shaking uncontrollably.

Vil'Tani looked at him in confusion and the concern, "Goten? What's wrong?" She asked.

Goten just shook his head and said, "No-Nothing… I… forget it." He said and kept his eyes glued on the Instructor.

Vil'Tani was confused. She couldn't make heads or tails of the emotions she was feeling from Goten. Granted she couldn't normally but now was especially bad. He seemed to be in turmoil and this made her concern grow.

"Goten… You can't hide anything from me. Something IS wrong, just tell me!" Vil'Tani demanded.

Goten didn't respond, he just kept his eyes on the Instructor and clenched his hands in front of him and desperately wished for the lecture to finish. No sooner had he made that silent wish it had come true. The bell rang and Goten's eyes opened wide with surprise and happiness. He bolted from the classroom leaving Vil'Tani behind for the first time since they had started going to the academy.

Vil'Tani frowned in concern and raced after him. They still had a class left and were going to go there when she felt Goten leave the academy and head home. Now really worried she left as well and followed Goten home. Vil'Tani flew as fast as she could but couldn't seem to catch up to him no matter how hard she tried. It didn't matter much anyways because Goten stopped at his house and disappeared inside. Vil'Tani landed in front of the house and rushed in less then a minute after him.

Chichi was standing in the living room looking up the stairs in confusion when Vil'Tani rushed into the house causing her to look at Vil'Tani questioningly.

"I don't know Chichi, he was fine until a few minutes ago when suddenly he just stiffened and refused to even meet my eyes or anyone else. After class he bolted home. I don't know what's going on!" Vil'Tani said, panic starting to appear deep inside. She was beginning to think that Goten hated her for some strange unknown reason or didn't want to be around her.

She was snapped out of her thoughts when Chichi began to push her from behind, "Don't just stand here young lady, go up and comfort my son! You are more then likely the cause of everything so fix it!" Chichi said as she pushed Vil'Tani right up the stairs. Once at the proper point Chichi left Vil'Tani and headed back downstairs to go to work on her gardens. 

Vil'Tani nervously approached the door leading into Goten's room. She knew he was in there, she could feel him, but she wasn't sure she wanted to know the reason of him running away from her. Vil'Tani slowly opened the door to Goten's room and found him laying on his back on his bed breathing hard like he had just flown across the world several hundred times. The covers of the bed were where he had left them, thrown aside in his haste to get ready for school. Vil'Tani frowned, perhaps it wasn't her; perhaps he was sick. The thought of such, scared her infinitely times more, for the thought of losing Goten was simply unbearable at any degree Closing the door she rushed towards Goten's side; she knelt beside him and took his hand in her own causing him to flinch.

Vil'Tani felt as if she had been struck when he flinched from her touch but she held on anyways, "Goten… Tell me… What's wrong?!" She said, panic now evident in her voice and face.

Goten turned to look at her with a pained look on his face, "Vil… I… I'm sorry…" He said causing her eyes to widen. Her heart was now in her eyes as she looked down upon him in fear, "… that I left. I had to… Or I would have torn your clothes off… right there in the academy and…" He trailed off, "I was fine one moment but… then the next all I could think about was… I'm so embarrassed!" Goten said as his cheeks began to burn. He quickly turned his head again to stare at the ceiling once more, unable to look Vil'Tani in the eyes anymore. 

Vil'Tani's eyes widened even more, but this time all fear and panic had fled from them. Her eyes slowly closed and when they opened, happiness shown through them, happiness and love. Vil'Tani suddenly laughed causing Goten to turn to stare at her again. She just gazed down at him with love in her eyes, "Oh Goten, you had me so worried!" Vil'Tani said with a smile.

Goten looked at her in confusion. Vil'Tani leaned forward and kissed him full on the lips, "You have kept me waiting three years my love… How much longer will you make me wait?" She whispered.

Goten's eyes widened for a moment as he struggled but finally his self control was overwhelmed. Goten wrapped his arms around Vil'Tani's neck and brought her lips down upon his and kissed her passionately. Vil'Tani was surprised by the suddenness of it but soon recovered and kissed him back just as passionately.

**********************************************************************************************

         Warning! This next section is NOT for those who are not of legal age to read or look at any pornographic content! 

         Warning! If you are not of age skip down to the next box like this one! 

**********************************************************************************************

Vil'Tani slid onto the bed when Goten moved over to make room for her, the two still kissing one another passionately. When the two broke apart for breath they smiled at one another. Goten bent forward to kiss Vil'Tani across her neck as he moved his hands under her shirt. He continued to place kisses on her neck, only pausing long enough to bring her shirt up and over her head in one swift movement.

Vil'Tani moaned softly as Goten placed kisses along her neck and slowly moved down to her breasts. She moved her hands under Goten's shirt and began to caress his back. Her hands suddenly tightened and gripped his back as he placed a kiss upon her nipple. Goten didn't have a clue what he was doing, he had let his instincts take over a long time ago and had just been enjoying the ride.

Vil'Tani was in much the same state as she pulled up both Goten's shirt and undershirt. With those encumbering clothing out of the way Vil'Tani took Goten's face in his hands and kissed him soundly, letting her tongue explore him as he explored her. Goten's right hand snaked under her and began to rub her back as his other hand softly gripped one of her breasts. He gently stroked and caressed the soft yet firm breast, sending her into a fit of ecstasy as she moaned into his mouth.

One particularly hard squeeze caused Vil'Tani to arch back and gasp as waves of bliss rippled throughout her body. She brought her head down to gaze at Goten lovingly, "Oh you sure know how to make me happy…" She whispered breathlessly as she went in for another kiss. Goten happily complied by kissing her back just as fiercely.

Vil'Tani's hands snaked down his back and slipped into his pants. She brought her hands around and began to indulge his erect member. Goten's eyes widened for a second before narrowing with mischief. Hands deftly slipped into Vil'Tani's pants causing her eyes to widen and gasp in pleasure as fingers slowly entered her. 

Similar thoughts suddenly entered their minds and two pairs of pants and undergarments flew across the room as they were torn from each other. She rolled on top of him, gazing down into his gentle eyes. She swept down for a swift, yet gentle kiss before rising again to meet him in the eyes. She gazed down upon him with love in her eyes as she positioned his member before her opening. She graced her love with a little smile that was returned in kind. This was the point of no return. Once she went down she was his and he was hers.

Vil'Tani slowly lowered herself onto her partner causing twin gasps of pleasures to echo throughout the room as Goten and Vil'Tani joined one another. Waves of pure pleasure washed over her as Goten entered her completely sending them both into heaven. The two lovers found themselves moaning in pleasure as Vil'Tani leaned forward to lie upon Goten's chest.

Goten smiled as he looked up at her and swiftly bought his arms around her slender back. Holding her gently he softly kissed her silken lips. She returned the kiss; deepening it slightly as she began to rock back and forth. Goten picked up the rhythm and the two began to move in sync with each other. The walls of Vil'Tani's cervix widened and collapsed in time to the rhythm the two had begun causing waves of pure pleasure to wash through both their bodies.

The two had begun at a slow pace but soon they picked the tempo up causing the frequency and volume of the moans of pleasure to increase. Goten and Vil'Tani suddenly broke their kiss and both arched back at the same time as they climaxed. Goten released himself into Vil'Tani with a loud moan as Vil'Tani emulated his actions. He continued to arch back and yelled in ecstasy as his climax escalated with the releasing of his seed, passing through the wave of vaginal lubrications that rushed out from his love and deeper into her cervix.

In the midst of the climax Goten's eyes suddenly turned animalistic as his head shot forward. Vil'Tani gasped in both pleasure in pain as Goten's teeth sunk deep into shoulder. Vil'Tani was still arched backwards; as she continued to climax. She gently held Goten's head in her hands and pulled him away from her. He looked up at her with confusion in his eyes, but the confusion disappeared as he witnessed a change within her eyes.

The twin red dots within Vil'Tani's eyes had changed shape to form a five point star pattern instead of a circle. Suddenly she brought her face down and kissed him passionately, as twin beams of red light shot from her eyes and pierced Goten's. There was no pain involved in the process as the same star pattern formed within Goten's eyes, only a sense of a circle being completed. Suddenly the two buckled as they climaxed one final time into each other before collapsing in exhaustion.

Goten rolled Vil'Tani over so that they were both on their sides facing one another. He smiled at her with all the love he felt for her. Their bond had been completed and no one was ever going to separate them. Vil'Tani smiled back at him and kissed him softly on the lips, "That was unbelievable." She whispered tiredly, "It was worth the wait… Oh Goten… I love you." She whisper as she hugged him tightly and buried her face happily into his neck.

Goten smiled down at her again and held her just as tightly, "I love you as well Vil." Goten whispered to her. A thought occurred to Goten, "Vil… Do you think you will become pregnant because of this?" He asked quietly.

She didn't bother looking up at him as she replied. "Oh I sure hope so Goten… I spent a lot of money on those pregnancy pills…" She murmured with her face still buried into his neck. Goten's eyes widened a little and was about to reply when he noticed Vil'Tani had fallen asleep. He just brushed some of her hair out of her face and pulled the covers over them. Goten laid his head down on top of his mates and drifted off into slumber with her. 

************************************************************************************************

        Warning! The above section is NOT for those who are not of legal age to read or look at any pornographic content! 

        Warning! If you are not of age do NOT read the content above! 

************************************************************************************************

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two hours later… 

Goten blinked his eyes as he slowly woke up. It took him a moment to figure out where he was and what was going on but when he did his eyes widened for a moment. The young saiyan looked down and smiled softly at his mate who was sleeping soundly in his arms. Vil'Tani had never looked as beautiful to him as she did now. Goten slowly brushed a piece of hair that had slid down in front of Vil'Tani's face and gently kissed her forehead. The young Cerian stirred a little inside Goten's arms as she woke.

It took Vil'Tani only a second to realize what had happened as sleep left her much more quickly then Goten. She raised her head to stare at him in the eyes. Black eyes met teal eyes and their lips met soon after for a kiss.

"Now this is a sight I can learn to love waking up to." Vil'Tani said as she beamed up at Goten.

Goten smiled right back, "I know what you mean. It just feels so right to hold you. I never want to let go." He replied.

Vil'Tani smiled and snuggled closer to Goten, "What a nice thing to say."

Goten brought one hand up and began to run it through her hair, "Vil… What did you mean about… what was it? Pregnancy pills?" Goten asked curiously.

Vil'Tani looked up at him again smiling as she answered, "It means I should be bearing our child as we speak. Normally there is a species barrier that can't be pierced, meaning we can never have children. Thanks to technology there are pills that overcome that barrier. I've been taking them ever since your birthday… I wanted to be prepared should this happen… And I'm glad I went through all that trouble." Vil'Tani said as she kissed Goten again.

Goten frowned for a moment, "Aren't we a little… young to be parents?" Goten asked uncertainly.

Vil'Tani just smiled, "Oh don't worry… It'll be several years before I give birth. The children inside my womb age just as slowly as I do." She responded.

Goten nodded and smiled, "Alright… Wait children?" Goten asked in confusion, "As in multiple children? How would know that already?" Goten asked.

Vil'Tani just gave a secretive smile, "That's for me to know and you to think about." She said with a wink.

"But…" A growl distracted Goten from what he was going to say. Goten gave a little laugh which Vil'Tani emulated, "I guess I'm a little hungry." Goten said sheepishly.

Vil'Tani disentangled herself from Goten and stretched luxuriously before she got out of bed. Goten followed suit and soon the two were staring at the pile of clothes in the center of the room where they had been flung.

Vil'Tani kneeled down and picked up her pants and inspected them for a moment before she turned to regard Goten, "Uh… Do you have a pair of pants I could use? Mine seem to have seen better days." Vil'Tani said as she showed Goten the torn pants.

Goten blushed, "Ah, I guess you could. I suppose I should have been a little gentler with them." Goten apologized.

Vil'Tani shook her head, "No don't apologize, I'd probably have gotten impatient and torn them off myself if you hadn't" She said.

Goten sighed with relief, "Sure, you can use a pair of my pants until you can get your own." He said as he walked over to his dresser.

Vil'Tani smiled as she followed him and took the pair of pants he handed her. The two dressed in silence, neither needed to speak aloud to communicate with each other. Once they finished the two newly mates left Goten's room and were immediately assaulted by the smells of Chichi's cooking.

Goten looked over at Vil'Tani and saw her smiling at him. They had both forgotten that it was only early afternoon when they had started their love making. Goten grinned at Vil'Tani, race ya! Goten sent to Vil'Tani a second before he bolted away. Despite that, Vil'Tani still beat him to the table.

Chichi smiled when the two suddenly appeared at the dinner table. "So Vil'Tani, I see everything has turned out for the best." Chichi said mildly.

Vil'Tani smiled and nodded, "Yup, everything worked out fine." She said as she glanced at Goten.

Chichi looked closer at Goten and Vil'Tani, "My oh my, you both have little red stars inside your eyes. I wonder what happened!" Chichi exclaimed.

Chichi smiled, "That's great but next time you two… could you be quieter?" Chichi asked. 

Both Vil'Tani and Goten blushed, a deep shade of red, and stammered their apologies out. Chichi laughed at their feeble apologies causing the two to blush even more. Suddenly Kakkarot appeared at the table drooling totally oblivious to what had just occurred at first. Suddenly he sniffed the air and turned to regard the two young people.

Kakkarot grinned wolfishly and winked at Goten causing the two to blush even more. Needless to say it was a rather uncomfortable dinner for Vil'Tani and Goten as Goten's parents relentlessly teased them about their 'activities' earlier that day.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Three month's later…

Trunks was sitting in his study going over the last few reports that had come in. All preparations for the war had been completed and now had come the time everyone hated the most, the waiting. Once Vegeta returned the final elements of the star fleets were to head to the rift to help aid their comrades for the inevitable. Suddenly the screen on the desk popped up and the communication's officer came online.

"PRINCE TRUNKS! You'll want to hear this! Your father is back! His ship just left warp-stream and is heading into our atmosphere!" The officer reported.

Trunks eyes widened, "Holy shit! Thanks! Bye!" Trunks said quickly and bolted from the room as he raced for the hangar bay. When he reached the bay they found Brolly, Landyn and Bulma already there and waiting.

Bulma turned and smiled at her son as she walked over to him, "Trunks! This is fantastic. Vegeta is finally back." Bulma said happily, a glow shining in her eyes.

Trunks bobbed his head excitedly as he smiled back, he had no idea of the pain she had to go through being separated from her mate for so long and he had no wish to ever find out.

Suddenly the hangar bay opened up making the others look up in anticipation, and they were not disappointed. The ship had already entered the capital and was slowly easing itself into the hangar that had been specifically designed for it. Suddenly Trunks' eyes widened in surprise, surprise that was mirrored in the eyes of both Brolly and Landyn. The power that was radiating from within the ship was enormous, far greater then anything they had ever thought possible.

A loud ka-chunk was heard as the ship eased itself into the locking mechanisms in the hangar. Several shadows appeared in the sky making the others to momentarily take their attention away from the ship and the power within it. From the sky came Kakkarot, (carrying Chichi to get to the hangar faster), Pan and Videl holding Eyan in her arms.

Kakkarot looked at the others as the group landed, "Do you feel that power?" Kakkarot asked. "That has to be Arthain, no one is that strong!"

The others nodded in agreement, suddenly hopeful that the future may turn out alright. Before anyone else had a chance to respond a hissing sound was heard as the door to the star ship opened up and began to lower. Suddenly an explosion rocked the ship and the door blasted free from the ship. Out from the hole floated Vegeta, in his evolved saiyan form.

"Stupid fucking door! It should learn to open faster when I'm in a hurry!" Vegeta growled as he glared at the door.

Vegeta turned to regard the gathering group and his eyes softened as he beheld his mate and his son. Suddenly Bulma found herself wrapped up in Vegeta's arms as he hugged her as tightly as he dared. Bulma's eyes were wide in surprise and happiness. Vegeta rarely displayed this much affection when they were alone, to display this much to everyone must have meant something big had happened. Bulma closed her eyes and enjoyed the moment as she wrapped her arms around Vegeta.

Vegeta slowly looked up to regard his son, "I'm proud of you Trunks. The fact that I wasn't facing an armed mob upon my arrival is a miracle considering all the possibilities for disaster that I left behind." Vegeta said, surprising everyone yet again.

"Enough of this mushiness Vegeta. You can tell them all that in private later, we do not have much time." A deep voice said from with the darkness of the ship.

The huge power that every had felt suddenly moved and exited the ship. To everyone's surprise Gohan stood before them in an evolutionary form beyond even that of Vegeta's. Everyone was thoroughly confused since they all thought it was Arthain they had been feeling.

Videl didn't care, all she cared was the fact that the love of her life was now within her sight. Gohan looked at everyone and his eyes softened, like Vegeta's, as he saw his family. Suddenly he too was beside his family hugging Videl. It was then that he noticed something.

"Videl… you have… you have become normal. How has this happened?" Gohan asked curiously.

Videl smiled up at him, "I didn't want to be left behind. You kept getting stronger while I was falling behind. I suppose when a saiyan reaches a certain power level they automatically evolved because their body can no longer contain the energy within them so the have to evolve. That's what happened to me. That didn't stop me from training even more. It scared me that someday I might lose you so I tried my best to catch up. I can go beyond this but I fear you've left us behind again. Pan and I, we both wanted to impress you." She said.

Gohan's eyes widened in fear as he remember what Arthain said to him years ago. 'You see children aren't meant to do intensive training… not until their body has grown enough naturally to handle it…' Gohan looked over at Pan and his eyes widened in surprise. Arthain was right; something had gone wrong, horribly wrong.

Pan smiled at her father, "Hello father, I'm glad you are home." She said in a voice that she should not possess.

Gohan sighed, "I am sorry Pan. If I had known training at an early age would do this to you I would not have let you train with me and your mother." Gohan said.

Pan shook her head and smiled, "Don't worry father, I don't mind. I did it for you, and for our race. I guess I inherited too much of your personality: friends and family before myself." She said in a soft voice.

Gohan nodded softly as he looked his daughter over again. Where a 7 year old child should have stood there was now an eighteen year old young adult saiyan. The intensive training at a young age had force Pan's body to grow much more rapidly, and for her mind and emotions to mature much more quickly, then was natural. If she had stopped training when the accelerated growth had started her body would have stopped at the age it had reached and proceeded to grow normally but Pan was too much like her father. She had kept going despite the unnatural changes that had been occurring with her. Her body had nearly fully grown and matured by this time cutting her time as a child short and her time as a teenager even shorter. She was already a woman in full bloom, and with the maturity to match. It was as if 14 years had been compressed into 4, with all the memories and experiences that a girl would have normally experienced added in.

Gohan walked over to his daughter and hugged her, "It is going to take awhile to get used to this…" He said softly as he kissed her forehead, "I expected to come back and still see a child and find a woman instead." Gohan said but frowned for a moment, "Your power though… It is greater then your mothers yet you have not evolved yet… why?" Gohan asked.

Pan looked down at the ground, at her mother, and then back to Gohan, "I have… just not like everyone else. My body wasn't what evolved… my mind was." She whispered.

Gohan was confused by this for a moment before his eyes widened, "You… have psychic powers?" Gohan asked curiously.

Pan nodded, "Yes… I've become a telekinetic telepath. Not many people like being around me because they are afraid I'll read their minds, or dominate their minds or crush them. Apparently there have been psychic people in the past but they all did horrible things." She answered.

Gohan frowned, "Do not worry Pan. I will take care of these rumors. You have become the beautiful women I knew you would become. You should have guys swarming you, not avoiding you." Gohan said, "Not that I will allow anything to take place. You are still my seven year old daughter to me." Gohan said jokingly.

Pan giggle softly before she lightly punched her father. "Oh father, you're the best." She said as she hugged her father again.

Gohan turned to embrace Videl again when he noticed a pair of arms around her neck and a pair of eyes staring out from her hair.

Gohan looked at Videl questioningly, "Is that who I think it is?" Gohan asked.

Videl smiled at him, "Yes it is." Videl said as she reached behind her head and pulled out Eyan. The little saiyan looked up at his father shyly. Eyan suddenly smiled brightly and flew into his fathers arms.

"Daddy daddy!" Eyan cried as he burrowed into his father's arms. Gohan smiled down at the little bundle of energy in his arms and smiled happily. Videl approached him and hugged him tightly. It was at that time that Eyan noticed the huge mass of hair on his fathers head. With a cry of joy Eyan jumped into the long hair and began to swim and play within it.

Gohan sighed helplessly although he didn't mind to much, "It appears that I have become a play ground." Gohan said.

Videl laughed and was about to respond when Landyn cleared his throat.

Landyn looked at Gohan in confusion, "Where's Arthain? We thought you were him because you're so powerful." Landyn said.

Gohan's mood took a 180 degree turn as he spat at the ground, "That bastard betrayed us!" 

Gohan snarled out surprising everyone more with his tone then with what he said.

Vegeta's eyes hardened as the past came back. He let go of Bulma and turned to address everyone. "Arthain betrayed us! He used us to get his body back, and that's it! He killed Karie!" Vegeta snarled.

Everyone was shocked yet again but Brolly felt something more, hurt and sadness. "Wh… Why did he do that? I thought he was on our side." Brolly said, almost on the verge of tears.

Vegeta understood what he was feeling but didn't say anything about it, "He needed her to get his body back… or as he put it, give birth to his body. He tore her soul out, destroyed it, and then used the parts from her body to reconstruct his!" Vegeta said. "After that he destroyed a country, annihilated a dragon clan, and killed multiple gods before he fled. He totally trashed us. You may think Gohan is strong, but he is NOTHING compared to that freak! He can't be a Saiyan… there is no way anyone can be that powerful and be normal!" Vegeta said as he hammered the floor in frustration.

Bulma reached down and comforted Vegeta as the others attempted to digest this new predicament.

Trunks approached his father, "Ah… Dad, I thought you may like to know. Everyone knows about Aerie." Trunks said.

Vegeta's head shot up in surprise, "WHAT! How did that happen? I said prepare quietly not blare the news to every fucking person!" Vegeta snarled in anger and confusion.

"I told them. Goten accidentally let it slip to Thraknor's son that Brolly was the one that attacked us. He incited a rebellion and in order to put it down I had to reveal the truth. Everyone knows… from the lowliest peasant on the poorest planet to the highest official and leaders." Trunks said and quickly continued as he saw Vegeta get angrier, "Don't worry, everything worked out for the best. As a matter of a fact every single race in the quadrant is mobilized for war against her. The rift from which she will emerge has been identified and we have hundreds of star bases constructed around it. The majority of our forces are in the vicinity and the final elements were just awaiting your return. Also once the Saiyans realized what Aerie had taken from them… Well many have gained it back." Trunks finished.

Vegeta's anger had quickly left him as Trunks relayed what had happened in his absence. "What do you mean… gotten back what she took?" Vegeta asked carefully, not really getting his hopes up for the answer he wanted.

Trunks cleared his throat, "I mean as in many Saiyans have evolved to become normal… like me and Goten. There are hundreds, maybe a thousand normal Saiyans now." Trunks answered.

Vegeta's eyes widened, "How did this happen?" He asked.

"Well mother distributed gravity chambers world wide and they've all been beating themselves into the ground trying to reach our level. After the first few reached our level their determination sky rocketed and soon they were popping up everywhere." Trunks said.

Vegeta smiled; hope flowing into him for the first time in almost a year, "Good, this is good. Perhaps we will have a chance after all. And all our allies are mobilized? Good! I'll send the signal. We need every ship at that rift. Send all the Cerians to Cerian Prime and pull the rest to the rift." Vegeta said.

Trunks looked at him in askance, "Why?"

Vegeta looked at Trunks, "Because their race is doomed, they might as well slow Arthain down as much as possible, by us as much time as possible. There's no point in wasting people defending a doomed race." Vegeta said.

Everyone but Gohan looked at him in confusion, "Doomed? What do you mean?" Chichi demanded. "There is no way I'm going to lose my daughter in law!" Chichi said.

"Daughter in law?" Gohan asked.

"Goten and Vil'Tani mated three months ago." Trunks said with a tinge of sadness in his voice.

Gohan nodded and sighed, "This is going to be hard on Goten… He may not survive it." Gohan said.

Chichi glared at Gohan, "Is that all you have to say?! Don't you care?" Chichi demanded.

Gohan glared right back, "Of course I care! That does NOT mean I can do anything about it! All I can do is hope for the best and prepare to beat Arthain. Like my daughter said. Our race comes first. The individual members of it can and will be sacrificed if the whole will remain safer and be stronger because of it! Everyone is expendable if it helps the Saiyan race survive, even me." Gohan snapped. Chichi rocked back as if slapped, she stared at Gohan in confusion and hurt. "Now, in case you are wondering, which no doubt you are, Arthain is headed to Cerian Prime to absorb their world crystal. Aerie absorbed the one on the old Saiyan home world and became what she is. Arthain intends to do the same with the one on Cerian Prime. You all know what that means: Two insane super powers either a) fighting each other or b) fighting with each other. Either way it is NOT going to be a walk in the park and I estimate that if we survive everyone will be severely weakened and completely dependent on everyone else. It gets even better. Aerie is Arthain's mate so there is a good chance of them joining forces." Gohan finished.

This news shocked everyone to their core and hope began to leak out. Vegeta saw this and snapped, "Get some backbones. Do NOT reveal this until the last moment. We can't have our allies backing out. If we are to have any chance we must hit the both hard and fast. A long dragged out battle will forever change our universe."

Trunks sighed, "Can this get any worse?" He asked.

"Unfortunately yes…" A feminine voice said from within the ship.

Alihvan stepped out and onto the walkway beside the ship. Trunks was thunderstruck. He had never seen a girl more beautiful in his entire life. It was as if a goddess had come down from the heavens and entered his life, needless to say he was struck speechless.

Alihvan caught Trunks staring at him and stared right back. She knew what he was thinking; it was quite obvious because his entire body was screaming it out. Slowly she crossed her eyes causing Trunks to snap out of his stupor. She felt odd around Trunks, even though she had just met him, but that wasn't going to change who she was.

"Ahh… I ah… I'm sorry" Trunks stammered, "I-I didn't mean to stare like that. It's just that… well… to me you seem like a goddess. Your beauty… elegance… everything…" He said and he blushed bright red.

Alihvan laughed out a merry tinkle, "It's alright Trunks. I am a goddess after all so you don't have to be embarrassed by calling me one." She said with a wink. Surprise crossed everyone's faces but she ignored it and continued, "As I was saying it can get worse. Arthain is after the world crystal. This universe hasn't recovered from the loss of the last one. Should this one be ripped away… it will die. The sad thing is that nothing can stop it from dying. We not only have to defeat Arthain and Aerie, but we must find some way of restoring the universe or everything is lost anyways. The universe will decay and break apart within a decade of its death." Alihvan said.

Worry and concern rippled through the group this time. Bardock came out of the ship and stood beside Vegeta. "We do have on piece of good news which makes me wonder. Arthain is insane, just as much as Aerie but… He has some control over it because it's not due to excessive power. He taught us a technique that may be used to defeat them. It's a fusion technique that triples the power of the combined fusioners. He may have used us but I don't think he could help it. His drive to be reunited with his mate overwhelmed nearly everything. I think he really wants us to beat them, to find some way to end their existence, or to cure their conditions. I'm not sure how to do this, but that is what I believe." Bardock said.

Vegeta glared at Bardock, "Why the hell didn't you reveal this sooner?" Vegeta demanded.

Bardock shrugged, "Because it just came to me." He said.

Vegeta grumbled to himself, "Alright fine. Anyways, when we fight Arthain and Aerie, Gohan and Videl will fuse together. It's good that Videl increased her strength. It will make that fusion just that much stronger." Vegeta announced.

Videl looked at Gohan and he smiled back at her. "Now, let the final preparations commence! Everyone, make sure you are ready because we are heading to the front line in two days."

Everyone scattered as they went off to complete their duties. Gohan caught his father before he had a chance to leave, "Father, where is Goten?" Gohan asked.

Kakkarot looked back at his son, "Him and Vil'Tani went to Cerian Prime to meet Vil'Tani's parents… If what Vegeta says is true then they'll have front row tickets to their own destruction." Kakkarot said sadly and flew off.

Gohan watched him go, sadness in his eyes. The thought of never seeing his brother again made him want to cry. Videl walked up to Gohan and wrapped her arms around him, "Don't worry Gohan, I'm sure he'll be fine. He is strong, like his father, like you. He'll live… even if Vil'Tani doesn't." She said softly.

Gohan sighed, "I hope you are right Videl… I hope you are right…"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Later that day…

Vil'Tani and Goten entered the warp gate that would take them to Cerian Prime. They had to wait a full day in customs on the Zioran home world but luckily for them the academy had been closed due to preparations for the greatest battle of all time, or that was the 'widely distributed' reason. The real reason was that Trunks and Goten wanted to train and the academy was getting in the way so Trunks postponed it until after the war. Goten and Vil'Tani had taken this time to train with each other as well as their friends.

Vil'Tani had thought it was time that her family learned of her relationship with Goten and so that brings them to where they are now, inside the warp gate leading to Cerian Prime. The warp gates were huge constructs that were capable of transporting thousands of people at a time. Two huge rings criss-crossed over the main platform of the warp gate. When turned on the rings began to twist and turn around the platform moving more and more rapidly until the people within it were atomized and their information carried across space to their desired destination where they were reconstructed again.

Aside from the rings and the platform a ground building made up the rest of the building. Inside the building was where one could get their tickets, or rather have their tickets checked. The warp gates were currently not available for anything aside from military and political uses. There were a few exceptions, like Goten and Vil'Tani, but not very many.

A white light enveloped Goten and Vil'Tani and suddenly they found themselves elsewhere. Vil'Tani arched back and breathed in deeply as a smile crept across her face.

"Planet Vegeta is nice and all but there is nothing like the smell of home." Vil'Tani said happily.

Goten smiled back at her and hugged her tightly, "I know what you mean. Let's not keep your parents waiting any longer?" Goten asked.

Vil'Tani smiled at Goten and took off with Goten's hand held tightly in hers completely oblivious to the danger that was just a month away.

Goten and Vil'Tani flew off and they soon reached her parent's place. It was an opulent palatial home that was situated just outside the capital city. Her father was the highest ranking general for the Cerian race while her mother was one of the three advisors to the empress. Vil'Tani's parents were surprised to find their only daughter already mated but they were happy she was happy. It also helped matters that Goten was a close friend and advisor to the future king of the Saiyan race as well as being extremely powerful in his own right.

Vil'Tani's parents paraded the two of them around past the glowering faces of Cerian noble sons that had hoped to gain Vil'Tani's hand. They couldn't do anything and everyone knew it. If Goten had been a weakling they could have pushed him or had him killed but he far out-classed them in every way shape and form. He had a higher position, he was stronger, faster, and he also already had possession of her heart and body, just like she possessed his.

There were many feasts and tournaments, many of which Goten entered and won. Goten literally romped through the competition. The strongest fighter he faced was weaker then he was when he was completely powered down. Goten and Vil'Tani met the empress and her family. There Vil'Tani was congratulated on her choice and the two were acknowledged officially as a couple under the Cerian law removing any possibility of another suitor breaking the two up. Any Cerian caught trying to do that was instantly killed without questions asked.

Their visit went like that day after day with training only occurring late in the afternoon but everything changed a month after the two had arrived. The entire Cerian fleet dropped out of the warp stream and took up defensive positions around the planet while the ships from the other races suddenly left. There was no explanation for this until Vil'Tani and Goten were summoned to the palace with urgency.

Upon arrival the two knew something was wrong almost immediately. The empress looked extremely tired as she sat upon her throne. When she became aware of the two she announced why she had summoned them.

"Vil'Tani… Goten… I want you two to leave this planet. Today, no as soon as I finish speaking with you." The empress said.

Vil'Tani and Goten exchanged confused looks, "But why?" They asked in unison.

The empress smiled sadly, "Do not question, you will find out only all too soon… Just make preparations to leave. You have one hour to pack. After that you'll be bodily dragged to a shuttle and sent to one of the out lying orbiting star bases." She responded.

Vil'Tani was about to protest but the empress shot her a glare, "I'm your empress and you'll do as I command Vil'Tani. Your parents serve me without question, I expect you to do the same. You know what I do is in your best interest." The empress said.

Vil'Tani curtsied and left. Goten quickly followed her, not wanting to be left behind. Within an hour, just like the empress said, the two were bundled up and placed upon a shuttle that immediately took off. Many of the high officials that were on the planet, including Vil'Tani's parents, had been placed upon the shuttle and others like it. The empress knew the planet was doomed but she had no idea what would happen should the world crystal be taken or destroyed. She thought that either each individual life force would return to its owner or they would scatter to the nine winds. She wanted to make sure as many people survived as possible should it be the first. If it was the second it wouldn't matter where they were.

The shuttle soon docked with the star base and the passengers disembarked. All of them were curious as to why they were sent away. None would be able to sleep or do anything until the mystery was solved. One person suggested heading to the viewing room to try and 'see' the reason they were sent away. Since no one else had a better idea they all agreed and went into the main control center of the star base.

There were other people in the control center and when the desire was conveyed to those working within the room the large screens suddenly turned on.

Vil'Tani looked over at Goten, "I wonder why the Empress sent us away." She asked curiously. "I thought it was just us but it appears as if it was everyone, even my parents."

Goten nodded, also thoroughly confused, until he felt something. "HOLY SHIT!" Goten yelled out causing everyone to stare at him in surprise.

"What is it?" Vil'Tani's father asked.

Goten shook his head and tried to come to grips with what he was feeling, "There's… There's no way… Nothing can be that powerful…" Goten said in horror.

Everyone stared at him in confusion until an explosion lit up on the screen, and then another and another. Suddenly every ship in orbit around the planet converged upon a single point firing their complete arsenal of weapons, only to be destroyed. Ships fell by the 10's, and then hundreds until finally the entire Cerian fleet exploded in a bright flash of light. The screen focused upon the center of the blast and soon something came into focus, a single person: A person with long golden hair, a person who looked disturbingly familiar to both Goten and Vil'Tani.

"ARTHAIN!" Both Vil'Tani and Goten shouted in surprise at the same time.

Everyone in the room stared at them in surprise and then horror.

One official grabbed Goten by his shirt, "WHAT! Arthain! Wasn't that the name of the saiyan that was supposed to help us?" He demanded.

Goten stared at him helplessly, "I… I don't know… That's what I thought… That's what I was told, me and Trunks, by Vegeta and Gohan. They said they were getting Arthain's body back… I don't understand…" Goten said in confusion.

The official was about to shake him again when Vil'Tani's mother remove his arm, "Leave my son-in-law alone. He obviously doesn't know what's going on. No one knows what is going on! We just have to make due." She said firmly.

The official grumbled and walked away. A bright light flashed across the screen and every stared in horror as a massive beam slammed into the planet. The beam didn't penetrate the surface, it wasn't meant to kill planets, but to cleanse them. There were mixed reactions in the control room as people cried out in horror while others collapsed and began to cry as mountain shattering shockwaves and kilometer high walls of fire rippled across the planet several times. All that was left of the planets surface after the beam had ended was dust and ash. All life had been extinguished.

Tears began to fall from everyone's eyes as the destruction became fully apparent. The planet had been completely leveled. All water had been evaporated and all surfaces smoothed down to make the planet one flat plane. Arthain descended to the planets surface and penetrated through the crust of the planet, his destination was the center, the world crystal.

When Arthain reached the center he turned and sealed the hole his entry had made. He was inside the reinforced adamantium core of the planet. It was virtually unbreakable; virtually meaning it was impossible to break through for anyone, with a few exceptions. Arthain wasn't alone in the room; the room had one other occupant, the empress.

"Why are you doing this?" She cried, tears streaming down her face.

Arthain shrugged, "Very simple reason: Aerie. I love her despite everything that has happened. I have to be with her, or I have to kill her. Only one of those two options will satisfy my mind, my insanity, my heart… but the only way I can get her attention is by being her equal, hence I need that crystal." Arthain said in an offhand manner.

"But all this death… this destruction! Why! You know what will happen to us once you take the crystal! Is the death of our entire race worth this?" She pleaded, hoping to reason with Arthain.

Arthain sighed, "You know, I've tried to find alternatives. I spent many millennia mulling over different ideas but… every idea that had any chance of working require the world crystal. But you don't understand… or rather you do. Love is the most powerful emotion in any being. I will do anything, be anything, and kill anything to be with her for just one moment. And I intend to do just that. I will kill you, I will take the crystal, your race will die, and I will be with my love, if only for an instant. If she refuses to accept me… I will kill her." Arthain said simply in a wistful kind of voice. His words had torn out any hope the Empress had of her race surviving this, "Love and Rage… They are the two most powerful emotions in a Saiyan. And the levels they have reached inside me are nearly overwhelming. If I can't act upon my love… I'll have to act upon my rage. One way or another, I will have my emotions satisfied and I will experience more peace than I have in a very long time." Arthain revealed, "Besides, I know what she did wrong. I also know that I will be able to avoid her situation. I'm insane yes… but it won't be because of the power which means that I will be able to control it… unlike her." He whispered.

The Empress tried once more, grasping onto a single ray of hope, "But what about the universe! If you take the crystal it will die with us!" She cried.

Arthain shrugged tearing the ray of hope away from the Empress. "I don't care, I told you. I will KILL anything to be with her… And I mean it… Now I'm finished talking with you." Arthain said as he raised his arm.

The Empress closed her eyes and bowed her head. Twin tears trickled from her closed eyes and fell to the floor as a flash of light erupted and ash drifted throughout the room. Arthain shook his head sadly as he approached the crystal that hovered in the center of the chamber. It was small, but it was to be expected. It was about the size of his palm and was thin and pointy. Inside the crystal the life forces of millions swirled and danced around inside. Arthain shrugged gripped the crystal tightly; their lives meant nothing to him. The universe shuddered as Arthain removed it from its place and brought it to him.

"Aerie made the mistake of inserting this into her brain… her head. It drove her insane… I won't make the same mistake… Because the only thing that can hope to compete with the power of the crystal is…" Arthain trailed off as he rubbed the crystal. Time seemed to slow as Arthain extended his arms and slammed the crystal directly into his heart.

Arthain roared in pain as he pushed the crystal entirely into his body, into his heart. Suddenly the pain ended and he felt a rush of energy, a rush beyond anything had ever experienced before.

Arthain bent over and snarled as he drew upon every single bit of pain and rage he had experienced in his long life and brought them to bear on the power that surged through him. With a roar of rage and power the core exploded, along with the planet. The universe cried out in agony as it, and the chosen race, died in a flash of bright light.

To be continued…

Wow… holy shit… I LOVED THAT!! DID YOU SEE EVERYONE I KILLED AHAHAHAH!! GO ARTHAIN! KILL KILL KILL!!… ahh I mean… ahem ok Geoff, settle down… whew k I'm good. Boy that was neat, what a cliffy eh?

Whew, ok like I promised I said I would post power levels before the big final battle and well… here they are :).

Alright… who to start with first… k, let's do insane people first… Oh I'll also be using super saiyan just so it corresponds with my previous power level posts but there is one thing I dislike but oh well. The power levels unfortunately did get insanely high but… what can I do. I want them that way. Call me a hypocrite I don't care, my story, you no like go somewhere else. Anyone who isn't Saiyan and have their power levels posted just assume it's the equivalent. Remember, these are maximums in each form or for each being. If you are wondering why I don't have even power levels like on the websites well… I really don't believe that the hero's in the series had EXACTLY 30,000,000 or exactly 100,000,000 or anything. I keep mine accurate to the nearest 1000 instead of rounding up to the nearest million or hundred million. The web power levels seem to dislike having anything more then 2 significant digits.

**Insane Beings  
**Aerie as an insane Implementor – Infinite, she draws power as she needs it, there is no limit to how strong or weak she can be.  
Aerie Super Saiyan 2 – 196,700,000  
Aerie Super Saiyan – 66,670,000 (She can't go ultra because they realized its disadvantage and didn't bother teaching how to go ultra in the past.)  
Arthain as an insane Implementor – Infinite, he draws power as he needs it, there is no limit to how strong or weak he can be.  
Arthain Super Saiyan 3 – 467,480,000  
Arthain Super Saiyan 2 – 217,430,000 (Can't go level 1 because he hit the third level.)

**Heroes  
**Gohan Super Saiyan 3 – 285,412,000  
Gohan Super Saiyan 2 – 132,750,000 (Can't go level 1 because he hit the third level.)  
Vegeta Super Saiyan 2 – 119,475,000  
Vegeta Ultra Super Saiyan – 60,750,000 (Comes with a slight speed decrease)  
Vegeta Super Saiyan – 40,500,000  
Brolly Legendary Ultra Super Saiyan – 78,600,000 (Doesn't come with a speed decrease)  
Brolly Legendary Super Saiyan – 39,300,000  
Kakkarot Ultra Super Saiyan – 58,545,000 (Comes with a slight speed decrease)  
Kakkarot Super Saiyan – 39,030,000  
Karie Super Saiyan – 19,092,000 (Before she died)  
Bardock Ultra Super Saiyan – 35,242,000  
Bardock Super Saiyan – 23,495,000  
Landyn Ultra Super Saiyan – 26,085,000  
Landyn Super Saiyan – 17,390,000  
Goten Ultra Super Saiyan – 41,910,000 (Slight speed decrease… Didn't know he was one eh? :P)  
Goten Super Saiyan – 27,940,000  
Trunks Ultra Super Saiyan – 41,890,000 (Slight speed decrease… Can't have one going up without the other :P)  
Trunks Super Saiyan – 27,925,000  
Alihvan – 119,234,000 (She also has other abilities like runic magic, immunity to spells/elements, immortality, immunity to disease and poison and other neat abilities.)  
Vil'Tani – 1,650,000 (Before the end of this chapter.)  
Videl Super Saiyan 2 – 124,401,000  
Videl Ultra Super Saiyan – 63,255,000 (Comes with a slight speed decrease)  
Videl Super Saiyan – 42,169,000  
Pan Psychic Super Saiyan – 109,234,000 (Will explain why it is so high below.)  
Pan Psychic Saiyan – 34,670,000  
Eyan Super Saiyan – 4,576,000  
Chichi – 541,000 (Infinite when the pans come into play)

(Pan's level is so high because of several reasons. One is non-stop hardcore training for years. Also she was growing and naturally gaining strength at a VERY rapid rate. She naturally would have reached 1,000,000 by the time she was 18. Also each generation of Saiyans is more powerful then the last. Kakkarot far outclasses Bardock, Gohan far outclasses Kakkarot, and Pan is going to far outclass Gohan. Makes sense right? Also she's a mutant saiyan. Her training turned her into one… although because she wasn't born one and of the unique way she became a mutant Saiyan, as in not through genetic manipulation, she gets none of the side affects of being a mutant but all the benefits, as in the special powers, one of which is physic powers while another is that she gets far more out of training then anyone else. There are a few other reasons but I've stated enough and I'll finish with ITS MY STORY!)

**Others  
**Alysa Super Saiyan – 11,293,000  
Arsenic Super Saiyan – 8,750,000 (Landyn beat him into the ground and trained him to become as strong as the elites, as well as his entire family.)  
Cain – 940,000  
Riho – 870,000  
Gahlanthas – 24,670,000  
Other Rune Lords – (15,040,000 – 20,307,000)  
Dragons – (0 – 196,749,000 (The 196,749,000 being the dragon god))  
Demon High Lord – 114,201,000 (Not actually seen but that's what it is. Demon Emperor is on par with the dragon god, hell you could call them rivals)  
Demon Lord – 86,704,000  
Other Demons – (14,000 – 1,203,000)   
I hesitate to put this but… I might as well because it was obvious that they were going to fuse for many chapters. Any transformations that are unexpected or will ruin the story if I post them will not be revealed here but at the end.  
Videl + Gohan fused = Vohdan – 746,406,000 (As level 2 super saiyan, any succeeding level is multiplied by 2.15 times (If there are any, not sure yet))  
Trunks + Goten fused = Gotenks – 167,560,000 (As level 1 super saiyan, level 2 is multiplied by 2.95 and the levels after that are 2.15 (If there are any, not sure yet))  
All the other Super Saiyans, the ones without names because I don't feel like giving them one have power levels between from 8,504,000 – 12,653,000 

Anyways, hope you enjoyed the chapter, I did… I think there's just 1 more left before the epilogue. This is going to be a hard one because I'm NOT entirely sure how I want this to end and worse yet… I'm not sure how the heroes are going to win if I DO want it to end that way.  I may just kill all the good guys because it's an easier ending… Who knows you'll have to wait and see.  I've done the same in the past; doing again now will just ensure that I have probably one of the most unique stories ever written. It may either end happy for everyone, happy for some and bad for others or the shit will hit the fan and everyone gets ass fucked. Haven't decided yet :).


	23. Chapter 22: Love Knows No Boundaries

A/N: In case you are wondering… Yes Goten and Trunks have formed their own special bond.  It occurred on Goten's 14th birthday.  That was what signaled Vil'Tani that Goten may become receptive to her and bond with her at any time.

A/N: Alright, this will be the final chapter (before epilogue) and boy will it be a BIG one.  I think we all deserve a huge grand slam of a chapter to finish things off eh?

A/N: One thing about Vohdan… She's a he and he's a she.  Both she and he apply to that being, so don't get confused when I use both.  Gotenks is a he because both Goten and Trunks are male; Vohdan is a he and a she because Gohan and Videl are male and female.  Vohdan is both male and female at the same time.  One thing, a fusion between male and female gains more then just a power increase.  A guy thinks 1 way, a female thinks another.  Men excel in brute strength and endurance (on average) while females excel in speed, agility and dexterity (on average).  Well a fusion (by dbz definition) takes the best of both worlds, and so does mine.  Vohdan, because it consists of both a male and a female, gains the best of both worlds.  Also being able to look at any and every situation in 2 different lights at the same time gives them an advantage, a very big advantage. 

A/N: Oh god… I just did something… *Marks this chapter as pure angst* Man I'm going to have people all over my ass for this chapter!

A/N: Thanks SSJ-ChibiGoten for editing this chapter, we got over our difficulties… once I managed to swallow my pride enough to realize that it doesn't really matter. 

****

**Chapter 22: Love Knows No Boundaries**

Goten stared at the planet in horror as it started to crack and break apart as energy rippled out from the interior.  Suddenly everyone around him began to scream drawing his attention away from the viewing screen.  To Goten's horror all the Cerians in the control center rose to their tip toes and screamed before suddenly they shuddered and fell to the floor dead.  Suddenly Goten felt something change and he quickly turned to look at Vil'Tani.

To his horror he saw the love of his life crumpled into a heap on the floor by his feet.  Goten quickly knelt and gently propped her up against him.

Goten brushed her hair out of her face and called to her, "Vil… Vil… wake up please, you have to be alive."  Goten said, panic started to well up in his throat.  There was no response, not even a twitch of a finger. "God no… this can't be happening… why…"  Goten said in a broken voice.  "I can't lose you… not so soon after joining with you…"  He whispered as bowed his head and wept.

A bright flash flooded the command center with light for a moment which was soon followed by the thumps of planetary debris hitting the outpost.

Goten slowly lifted his head and glared at the viewing screen with feral rage.  The object of his undulating rage was transforming in the center of the screen, Arthain.  Goten gently laid Vil'Tani down and slowly stood with his head bowed.  When he raised his head tears of blood were streaming down his face as his face twisted into rage.  Goten flashed forward and blasted threw the viewing screen, several doors and hallways and then the outer star base wall.  Emergency doors closed to stop the leak of oxygen that Goten's hasty exit had created.

Goten glared at the light in the distance as rage began to pour off him in the form of energy.  Goten's head slowly bent down reluctantly as if a great pressure was being exerted upon him and he began to scream.  It was soundless due to the lack of particles in space but the waves of force that were rippling out from his body were more then enough to determine what was happening.  Goten arched back suddenly and screamed even harder as tears of blood dripped down either side of his face.  With a massive outburst of energy Goten exploded into evolution.  Massive shockwaves rippled out from Goten; only to be enveloped but even greater ones that rippled out from Arthain.

Goten stared at Arthain in rage and was about to blast towards him when suddenly he stopped.  The rage drained from him and was soon replaced with fear as Arthain completed his evolution.  The very fabric of reality tore around Arthain as he roared in rage and agony.  Tendrils of red energy lashed out across space striking anything within distance. After what seemed like an eternity to Goten, Arthain stopped roaring.

A slight movement was all the warning Goten received before Arthain appeared before him. A sphere surrounded the two, a sphere filled with oxygen and nitrogen.  Goten backed away, fear rolling off him in droves.  If Arthain had been terrifyingly powerful before, words couldn't describe what he had become.  Aerie had been a being of pure cyan energy; Arthain was a being of pure blood red energy.  Arthain had transformed into a thirty foot replicate of himself, created out of blood red energy.  Hundreds of tendrils of energy snaked out from his back, many of which wrapped themselves around his body to serve as his clothing.  The others whipped and lashed out around him seemingly out of control but Arthain knew what he was doing.  Swirls of cyan energy filled the holes where his eyes should have been and little tendrils of cyan energy could be seen from time to time throughout his body.  Arthain still possessed his long flowing hair that had signified his evolutionary stage, but now it was consisted of the same energy that made up the rest of his body.

Arthain grinned, he enjoyed the fear that Goten was exhibiting but he wasn't here to hurt him, on the contrary, he was here to help him.

Goten was startled when he heard a voice in his head, **_GOTEN.  YOU WILL NOT DIE HERE.  I AM HERE TO… HELP YOU._**

_'__What… here to help me?'_  Goten thought, _No way… I…_

Arthain laughed, **_DO NOT FEAR ME GOTEN. I AM NOT WHAT YOU THINK, NOR HAVE I DONE THE THINGS I HAVE FOR THE REASONS YOU MAY BELIEVE.  YOU HAD BETTER LISTEN BECAUSE I WON_****_'_****_T SAY ANY OF THIS AGAIN.  IT IS UP TO YOU AND YOUR RACE TO STOP ME AND AERIE._**

Needless to say Goten was shocked.  _Arthain wants us to defeat him and Aerie?  _Suddenly everything became muddled to Goten.  He no longer knew what was going on.  _Wasn__'__t Aerie the enemy and Arthain on our side?  But no wait Arthain killed so many people and became the enemy and yet he wants us to kill him?  What'__s going on…?_

Arthain smiled, flew closer to Goten and lowered himself to look Goten in the eyes. **_VIL_****_'_****_TANI WILL NEED YOU NOW MORE THEN EVER GOTEN. GO TO HER AND BRING HER BACK.  SHE NEEDS A GUIDE AND YOU ARE THE ONLY ONE THAT CAN PROVIDE IT.  ONCE THEY ARE ONE A PORTAL WILL OPEN TO TAKE YOU TO PLANET VEGETA.  DO NOT DELAY IT WILL NOT REMAIN OPEN FOR LONG.  FAREWELL YOUNG SAIYAN…  AND TAKE THIS WITH YOU ON YOUR WAY BACK… SOMEONE OR SOMETHING MUST REPLACE WHAT I HAVE TAKEN!_**  Arthain said telepathically to Goten and proceeded to float back a little ways. He winked once before he took off.  Reality warped and twisted around him as he flew towards the spot where everything ended and began.

Goten stood there shocked for a moment before he remembered something Arthain had said.  Suddenly Goten was blasting away once more, but this time towards the star base.  He slammed through the walls once more heedless of the destruction he caused.  He only wanted to get to Vil'Tani as fast as possible.  Once inside the command center Goten rushed to Vil'Tani's side and picked her up again.  It was then that Goten noticed something.  He could still feel Vil'Tani, through the bond.  She was just far away.

_Vil… VIL…!  Please… come back to me…  VIL!_ Goten wrapped the bond up with his life force and strengthened it as he pumped his own energy through it, to light the way home.  Abruptly Goten felt a tug on his life force, as if it connected with something.  Goten concentrated and -although couldn't for the life of him understand what he did afterwards- pulled Vil'Tani back.  He grappled his life force around Vil'Tani's spirit and retracted it.  He pulled his life force back into his own body, dragging Vil'Tani with it.  Goten felt his love return to the star base at a rapid rate but he couldn't celebrate just yet, he still had to get her back into her body and he had no clue how.  What happened next occurred on pure impulse.  Like his previous move he had no idea how he did it or why he did, he just went through with it.  Goten redirected the returning life force through Vil'Tani's body and then into his own. 

It was almost an hour later when he felt Vil'Tani's spirit re-enter her body along with the bulk of the life force he had sent out along the bond he stopped pulling it in.  He wasn't sure what was supposed to happen next.  He had found his love; brought her back to her body but he had no idea what to do next.  The unknown thoughts and techniques that had suddenly appeared in his mind before weren't appearing anymore.

_Come on Vil… please… do something… come back…_ Goten pleaded silently to his love.  Goten was beginning to feel the pangs of despair.  The thought of losing her after coming so close to being with her once again was almost too much for Goten to bear.

Suddenly Vil'Tani's spirit kicked and buckled making Goten's eyes widen in fear for a second before he felt their bond return in full force.  A smile creased his face as relief flooded every pour of his being.  Vil'Tani's eyes flickered and slowly opened making Goten's face fully bloom.  Goten embraced his love as if he never wanted to let go.  Vil'Tani looked around in confusion before she turned to look at Goten.

"Go-Goten…"  She said, her voice cracking like she was dying of thirst, "Wh-What happened…  I should be… dead… I felt myself die…"  Vil'Tani whispered.

Goten smiled down at her, "I don't know… Arthain told me you needed me and that I was the only one who could save you.  I didn't know how to save you but… these ideas and thoughts kept appearing inside my head and I grasped onto them, hoping against hope that it would work… and it did.  You're back… Oh Vil…"  Goten said happily and kissed her soundly.

Vil'Tani was surprised at Goten's words but she soon let them drop as she kissed him back in full.  When they broke apart Vil'Tani smiled up at him.

"I don't know how I am alive… I'm just glad I am…"  Suddenly Vil'Tani's eyes widened in fear for a second before it fled.

"What was that…."  Goten started to ask.

Vil'Tani just shook her head, "Oh nothing…  I was just worried about our children but they are safe.  I can still feel them inside me."  Vil'Tani answered.

Goten looked down at her stomach then back up at her eyes and smiled in relief, "That's good to hear…  Although making them again would be fun… I'd rather keep these ones."  Goten said.

Vil'Tani smiled and nodded, "Same here."  She whispered, "I think we should get out of here… but how?"

Goten frowned, "Arthain said when this was all done a portal would open to take us to planet Vegeta but… I don't see any portal or…"  Goten's eyes widened, "Perhaps something else must happen first…"  He wondered aloud.

Vil'Tani struggled to stand, still weak from her out of body experience.  Goten stood with her letting her lean upon his shoulder for support.  When the two were erect Vil'Tani looked around and sadness filled her eyes.

"I can't believe it… everyone… everyone else is dead."  She said, trying to choke back a sob, "Mother… father… everyone…"  Vil'Tani trailed off…

Goten wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly as she buried her head into his chest and wept for her family, friends and race.  Goten rubbed hand up and down her back as he ran the other through her hair.

"I know no words will ever ease the pain Vil… but if it's any consolation… I'll be here for you forever."  Goten whispered.

Vil'Tani wrapped her arms around Goten and gripped him tightly.  The two held onto each other like their lives depended upon it, and in a way it did.  Time seemed to slow as Vil'Tani wept the pain she felt out of her system.

After several minutes of crying Vil'Tani looked up from Goten's tear stained shirt.  A small smile lit her face as she looked Goten in the eyes, "I'm so glad to have met you Goten.  If you hadn't entered my life… I… you are perfect, everything I could have ever hoped for in the person I am to spend the rest of my life with."  She finished.

Goten laughed a little at that, "Come on Vil… I'm not that perfect you know."  Goten said modestly.

Vil'Tani giggled a little, "I know… but the flaws are what make you real.  If you were truly perfect, you would not exist.  You're as perfect as they come, at least to me you are."  Vil'Tani said as she tightened her grip on Goten.

Goten smiled and kissed her, "I could say the same for you.  I could wish your temper was a little less violent but I guess I'm stuck with the good and the bad."  Goten said helplessly.

Vil'Tani frowned, "Hey!  Take that back!"  She said as she lightly punched Goten in the side.

Goten laughed and was soon joined by Vil'Tani.  The laughter helped to ease the pain and heal the scars.  The wounds they had both suffered that day would never heal but with time, they will ease and get better.  They will fade more and more until they are just a memory, an awful memory, but only a memory.

Vil'Tani was the first to stop laughing.  She looked up at Goten with tears in her eyes, but this time they were tears of joy.  She opened her mouth to speak when suddenly she went rigid, her mouth still open wide.

Goten instantly feared the worst, "Vil… Vil what's wrong?"  Goten asked worriedly.

Vil'Tani only said four words, "They… followed me… back…"  Vil'Tani whispered and the she began to scream, but not in pain.

A shockwave rippled out from Vil'Tani that decimated the command center.  A second shockwave rippled out from Vil'Tani, and then a third.  More and more began to ripple outwards until there were hundreds and thousands of shockwaves emanating out from her every second.  The Cerian life forces that had been locked with the crystal had been scattered to the nine winds when Arthain had absorbed the crystal.  Now they had a new host to latch onto, Vil'Tani.  Goten had brought her back, and they had followed her.  The entirety of the Cerian race was joining their power with Vil'Tani's.

Soon there were so many shockwaves rippling out of Vil'Tani that it was all Goten could do to hold onto her.  The star base had long since been vaporized and Goten had been forced to create a bubble of air around them.  Suddenly a massive shockwave, dwarfing any that had preceded it erupted from Vil'Tani momentarily blinding Goten.  Goten started to get worried as he felt his love shifting and changing inside his arms.  The force of the blast had nearly ripped him from her but nothing short of death could have removed his arms from around her at that moment.

When Goten could see again Vil'Tani had gone under a startling change.  Like Saiyans Cerians also have different evolutionary levels, only it required a great deal more energy to evolve.  Vil'Tani had received that energy.  Vil'Tani clung to Goten as she gasped for breath.  The transformation had taken a lot out of her.  She smiled up at Goten and kissed him.

"Don't worry… I'm alright…. They just wanted a place to stay.  They didn't want to wander across the universe by themselves forever.  Now they won't have to.  They'll live on… inside me.

Goten frowned worriedly, "They?"  He asked.

She beamed up at him, "My people… they're all inside me… or rather their life force is inside me.  Don't worry."  Vil'Tani was quick to assure Goten when she saw his frown deepened, "I'm still the one you love.  I'm not going to change.  They just have a small place in the back of my head where they can exist now.  I can call upon their memories and powers whenever I need to but… I'm not about to change."

Goten sighed with relief.  His biggest worry had been Vil'Tani becoming her race, instead of just being a container.  "I'm going to have to get used to your new look."  He said with an exaggerated sigh.

Vil'Tani frowned and pouted, "What's wrong with how I look!" She demanded.

Goten scratched his head, "Well… despite having a slightly more mature and full body."  Goten said as he referred to her slight increase in height and breast size, "The fact your skin is now the same color as mine instead of green, your hair is now a lustrous silver color and the muscles on your body have nearly doubled in size might have something to do with it…" Goten said and made a face, "You're even more irresistible now then you were.  It's going to make it hard to keep my hands off you."  He said helplessly.

Vil'Tani was about to berate him when he said the last two sentences.  She closed her mouth and kissed him soundly, "My, that does sound like a problem.  One I can perhaps… use to my advantage?"  She said wirily with an arched eyebrow.

Goten grumbled, "Knew I shouldn't have said anything."  He mumbled to himself causing Vil'Tani to laugh and kiss him again.

"Don't worry, I can't deny you anything."  She said as she kissed him a third and fourth time.

"That makes two of us."  He said with a smile and started to kiss her back.

A light appeared abruptly just to their right while they were in the midst of the kissing.  Two heads turned as one to regard the portal that had opened up.  They turned back to face each other with speculation written all over their faces.

"I think that's our ticket home."  Goten said softly.

She tilted her head and smiled at Goten as the two entered the portal hand in hand.

The one thing that Goten hadn't mention was that she was now far stronger then he was when he was at his maximum in his ultra form.  It hadn't any need to be said.  She knew it as well, but she wasn't going to mention it.  It didn't both either of them that she was now the stronger of the two.  They were virtually one and the same.  They would both rather die then let the other be harmed and they kept no secrets from one another.

When Goten and Vil'Tani stepped from the portal they found themselves just outside the capital city, Vegeta.  The portal closed almost on their heels and Vil'Tani could have sworn she saw a tinge of red in the portal frame.  The planet felt empty.  Very few people were left upon Vegeta and all of them had congregated inside the capital city.

Goten frowned, "What's going on?  There should be more people here."  Goten perplexed.

They didn't have to wait for the answer long because soon a golden glow, followed by a being with runes whirling around it, was seen speeding out of the city and towards them.  Trunks touched down in front of Goten and laughed out loud.  Alihvan descended soon after and stood beside him.

"GOTEN!"  Trunks exclaimed, "You're alive!  I can't believe it.  When I felt your presence here I dropped what I was doing and came as quickly as possible."  Trunks said excitedly and then stopped as he looked at Vil'Tani, "Wha…  Who are…? Vil'Tani?"  Trunks asked in confusion.   Vil'Tani smiled and wrapped her arms around Goten causing him to smile at her, "My god… what happened to you?  You changed and… your power… What the heck is going on?!  What happened to you two?"  Trunks asked.

Vil'Tani's smile fell for a moment before she recovered, "A lot has happened…  Arthain… Arthain destroyed Cerian Prime and took the world crystal."  Vil'Tani said sadly.

Trunks sighed, "Damnit!  My father was right…  I held hope that perhaps he wouldn't actually go through with it but… damnit."  Trunks swore.

"It's odd though…  Arthain isn't evil… he's not a villain… not in the sense we were brought up to think of them as anyways."  Goten said thoughtfully causing the other three to look at him questioningly.  Goten blinked when he saw he had their undivided attention and smiled sheepishly, "Well… I know it's not much to go on but he spared my life.  When Arthain transformed into the same creature that Aerie is he… he approached me.  He was huge, towering over me and was comprised completely of blood red energy.  His power was… is…  It's astronomical.  He could have crushed me by merely blinking his eye at me.  I'll be the first to admit it was a scary situation.  The thought of facing two of them makes me shudder but… I still find it odd.  He didn't kill me; in fact he helped me…"  Goten trailed off thoughtfully.

Alihvan blinked in surprise, "Helped you?  I don't get it.  He's killed everyone up until now, why would he spare you let alone help you?"  She asked.

Goten looked at her, "Ah… I don't think we've met."  Goten said carefully.

Trunks smiled, "Don't worry Goten.  This is Alihvan, she's just a goddess."  Trunks said in an off-hand manner.

"J-Just a goddess?"  Goten and Vil'Tani asked in unison as their jaws dropped.

Alihvan shrugged and smiled at Trunks before she turned to respond, "I'm still young and weak but I'm getting stronger.  I came here after Arthain killed my friends and adopted family.  Revenge was the sole reason for my being here but… I think I've found another reason as well.  I'll just have to see how things turn out."  She said cryptically.

Goten shook his head and tried to come to grips with the revelation, "Alright I'll just accept it and not bother to try and worry about the specifics."  He said, "Anyways, in response to your question he has.  He's killed everyone he has encountered… Or at least that is what I thought at first.  I was wondering why the planets were disappearing in a completely random pattern.  Sometimes a dozen solar systems between the old saiyan home world and Cerian Prime would be untouched only for the next four to be totally destroyed.  I believe he's trying to get a message across… A message no one received."  Goten said quietly and suddenly his eyes lit up like he just had a revelation, "Now that I think about it I was wondering how I knew what to do and when to do it to save Vil'Tani…  Now I think I know.  Arthain said that she was still alive after I had thought she had died…  He also provided to portal to get her and I here.  That is how we arrived out of the blue.  This gives me reason to suspect that he planted inside my mind the required knowledge and techniques to save my love.  I also suspect that he knew what would happen if she was brought back.  She's evolved… When she was brought back to life by me the other dead Cerians followed her.  Most spirits, when they die, go to heaven but… they didn't because they never truly died.  They were just misplaced.  Now they have a place, inside her.  She contains the entirety of the Cerian race inside her, their memories and their power and what's more, she no longer draws upon the world crystal, so she can live out her life without fear of dieing due to that.  There's more as well.  Arthain seemed to… regret killing the universe.  When he took the crystal the universe died but he said that it didn't have to be so.  He said that someone, or something, could replace it, has to replace it or everything will die.  That's not all… he wants us to kill him.  He told me so himself.  He wants to die after he has met up with Aerie, and he wants us to kill her as well…  Well stop was the words he said but I don't see how we can do anything but try and kill them."  Goten looked up at Alihvan and Trunks and grinned sheepishly as he finished his story.  Vil'Tani knew all of this already; the two of them shared each others memories and thoughts to one another without thinking.  Their minds were linked more closely then should have been possible, the two could virtually be considered to possess one mind.  The two didn't know how this came about; they just accepted it, neither cared much anyways because it just saved them the trouble of telling the other anything.  They both suspected it came about due to the resurrection, and the fact that Goten hadn't released his energy when Vil'Tani's spirit regained control of her body.  Now it was too late to take it back.

Trunks and Alihvan shared surprised glances, "I… I don't know what to say.  My father should hear this."  Trunks said and Alihvan nodded in agreement.

"That reminds me Trunks… Where is everyone?  Wait… your father?  He's back?  What about Gohan!?"  Goten asked excitedly.

Trunks smiled, "I see you're still as hyper as ever.  And to answer your questions: Every able body has headed towards the rift, my father is back but he's probably on the bridge of the main flag ship and Gohan is more then likely with him."  Trunks said in response to Goten's questions.

Goten smiled happily, "YES!  Finally he's back…. Why are you still here if every able body is at the rift?"  Goten asked curiously.

Trunks shrugged, "I don't know… I had weird thought an hour ago.  I just felt a bizarre compulsion to come home and wait for you.  I had no idea where it came from but it felt very wrong to ignore it.  Alihvan followed me, saying something about being bored waiting alone."  Trunks replied.

Goten frowned, "Hmm… interesting…"  He said.

Trunks sighed, "Let me guess, you think it was Arthain that induced that compulsion?"  Trunks asked.

Goten nodded, "Yes, I do think that.  It was just over an hour ago when he talked to me. The time frame seems to fit perfectly and after everything else I've witnessed…  I really wouldn't be surprised if it was him that planted that idea in your mind."  Goten said.

Alihvan sighed, "Trunks… Goten is right.  Someone did tamper with your mind an hour ago.  It's the main reason I followed you.  I didn't want you to step into a trap alone.  I didn't know who did it at the time but…"  Alihvan trailed off and just shrugged.

Trunks grumbled, "Fine I'll concede.  Anyways let's get going.  I bet you're longing to meet your brother after so long.  The Ziorans constructed several warp gates around the rift for easy travel to and from so it won't take us long to get there."  Trunks said.  He was about to turn and leave when he remembered something "Oh!  Goten, I have something I need to teach you.  I watched Videl and Gohan do it and I'm sure I know how to perform the trick as well.  We'll be able to triple our combined power with it!"  Trunks said excitedly.

Goten smiled, "Awesome.  Won't our parents be surprised when we suddenly become stronger then them!"  Goten said, becoming just as excited as Trunks.

Trunks nodded excitedly, "Ya, anyways let's get started."  Trunks said.

Vil'Tani and Alihvan watched as Trunks told Goten what he had to do.  The young saiyan caught on quickly and came to the conclusion that many others had before him.  When Trunks stopped his spiel he got into position and beckoned Goten to do the same.  Soon the two had their palms together and fingers aligned as they began to power up.  When Trunks reached his maximum Goten matched his perfectly.

"Now for the hard part."  Trunks said.

Goten nodded and the two concentrated. They didn't form the body in their minds, rather they thought about what they wanted to become.  It took awhile but eventually they began to get a feel for what the other wanted to become and adjusted their image accordingly.  The girls grew tired of watching the two stare at each other and began to focus their attention on other matters, namely getting to know each other better.  It took nearly an hour after they had started to come up with an image they both agreed upon and by that time Vil'Tani and Alihvan had became much closer.  An explosion erupted outwards and where Goten and Trunks had once stood as they flowed into the image they had created.  The new saiyan had spikey Vegeta like black hair with a strip of lavender running across it.  He wore black trousers and a black shirt with a blue over shirt.  The figure rubbed his nose and grinned.  "Oh ya!"  The new saiyan said with dual voices, "THIS is the kind of power I've wanted to feel!  I bet I can beat Gohan now!"  The saiyan turned to smile at Alihvan and Vil'Tani, "Hello girls…  The name's Gotenks!"

Vil'Tani sighed in mock annoyance, "Great, just what we need, Trunks and Goten as one.  They're bad enough alone but together as the same person?  I'm not so sure the universe is ready for that!"  Vil'Tani said in helpless tone.

The two girls laughed causing Gotenks to frown and suddenly a plume of smoke rose up revealing Trunks and Goten as separate people again. "Come on Vil we aren't that bad!"  Goten said in a small voice and began to pout.

Vil'Tani laughed again and kissed his lower lip, "It's so fun to tease you."  She laughed.

Alihvan fidgeted for a moment before she finally made up her mind, "Trunks…  I wasn't sure but…  I think you should have this."  She said causing him to turn and regard her curiously.

Alihvan stretched her hands out and suddenly a glowing broadsword appearing in her hands. Trunks' eyes widened in surprise, "Holy shit what is that?" He asked in surprise.

Alihvan smiled at him, "It's the Sword of the Avenger.  It can cut through just about anything.  It was capable of harming Arthain many millennia ago in the god war.  I know you like to use broadswords, considering there is one strapped to your back at all times, so I want you to have this."  She said.

Trunks approached her and gently took the sword from her hands.  The sword burst into light causing Trunks to use two hands for a moment.  When the light died down it literally hummed with power.  Trunks looked from the sword to Alihvan and back again.

"I… I don't know what to say.  It's awesome.  It has a life force of its own."  He said in wonder.

Alihvan nodded, "The sword just bonded with you Trunks.  Only you are able to wield it.  To anyone else it's just a lump of steel not capable of anything special.  Like I said it was used during the god war.  It has several other special abilities.  It has a rather… bad habit of commenting on what you do…"

"What do you mean bad habit?!  I'll have you know that all of you could benefit from what I have to say!"  The sword burst out in protest, "It's not my fault my creator gave me a cynical sense of humor!  I just make due with what I have! Stupid little go…" The sword trailed off.

Alihvan looked at Trunks helpless, "See what I mean?  Anyways it'll prevent anything from tampering with your mind as well it'll protect you when it can.  It… ahh…"  Alihvan trailed off before she quickly said the next part, "It-was-given-to-a-female-mortal-by-her-immortal-lover-as-an-engagement-present."  She said with a slight blush.

Trunks' eyes widened a little, "You know… I'm used to Goten speaking fast so I caught everything you said…  Does this have more meaning then just a friendly present?"  Trunks asked curiously and with a little hope.

Alihvan blushed and turned away, "Who knows, we'll have to see.  I haven't decided yet."  She said quickly and took off towards the warp gate.

Trunks gazed after her for a moment before he flew off after her as well.  Goten and Vil'Tani exchanged knowing glances and burst out laughing and followed the other two.  It seemed Trunks wouldn't be alone for much longer.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A short time later…

Everyone, aside from Gohan, Videl, and Vegeta, were getting ready for the final battle and were both physically and mentally preparing themselves.  Gohan was seated to Vegeta's right with Videl standing beside him as the King of the Saiyans surveyed the sight in front of him.  He knew it would happen but he, like his son, had hoped it wouldn't.  Arthain had arrived upon the scene, and to everyone's surprise he had become the very thing they were suppose to fight, only a different color and in complete control of his faculties.  Vegeta had been bombarded by messages when Arthain burst through the fleet of ships surrounding the rift, from the outside.

Vegeta had responded the best way he could, he told the truth.  He composed a single message and sent it to everyone that required it.  He would let the leaders deal with their own people the best way they could.  Vegeta had outlined the majority of what had happened on his journey, although he did leave out a few details and embellished upon a few.  There was no way he was going to let the others know that Gahlanthas had had him running across the planet at his beck and call for a short while.

When news of the destruction of Cerian Prime became common knowledge the people's resolve became rock solid.  They were going to avenge their allies, everyone that had fallen to the two Implementors, and nothing was going to deter them.  The sight still was not a good one.  He had held hope that when Arthain arrived that perhaps he had absorbed the crystal to help them but the scene that was currently being displayed betrayed that thought.  With Arthain on one side and Aerie on the other the rift was opening extremely fast.  It would only be a matter of a few hours before it was large enough to allow Aerie to pass through.

Red tendrils were tearing the rift wider from the back while cyan ones lashed out at it from the front.  Even more disturbing then the rift opening were the cyan colors that flashed across Arthain's body, and likewise, red colors that flashed throughout Aerie's.  The two both possessed a world crystal, and they were sharing their power with each other.  Vegeta sighed and brushed a hand through his hair.  It was going to be either a very long day, or a very short one.  Either way he wasn't looking forward to it.  So far they still had no idea how to kill Aerie, let alone Arthain.  His only hope was that they would turn upon one another and become weakened enough so that he could finish them off.

Gohan was quietly talking to his mate about the final battle.  All the saiyans that had regained their former level of evolution would be participating in the final battle directly.  The other saiyans were instructed to help from afar.  The devolved saiyans would provide extra power to the shields of the ships they were placed in but more importantly, because the Ourians were taking care of the major part of that, the saiyans were going to fire energy blasts and waves from afar.  They weren't meant to damage the opponents, merely distract or annoy them, to divert their attention from the saiyans that were going to do the majority of the dirty work.  There were so many star ships, fighters, weapon platforms and star bases surrounding the rift that it looks as if the entire part had been encased in a wall of steel and flesh.  Not all of the ships that were participating in the final fight were constructed of steel.  There were a few bio-mechanical ships in the mix as well.  There was no worry of them being taken control because they lacked minds of their own and were controlled by the mental direction of the pilots seated within them.

There were going to be a few people spear heading the final assault: Vegeta, Kakkarot, Brolly, Videl and Gohan, Landyn, Bardock, Alihvan, Pan and the two hyper active kids, if Goten survived the destruction of Cerian Prime.  No one really wanted the last three going but it would have been impossible to try and stop them.

The door to the bridge of the flag ship opened and Pan walked in with a huge smile on her face.  Vegeta saw this and glared at her, "Alright, what's made you so happy?  Nothing about what has happened in the past little while has created any cause for that joy!"  Vegeta grumbled.

Pan bowed her head slightly, "Oh… I'm happy because my uncle is still alive, and in fact…"  She stopped as the door opened again to admit Goten, Trunks, Alihvan and Vil'Tani.

There were mixed reactions and emotions felt all around.  Vegeta stared at Vil'Tani in surprise as Goten and Gohan laughed and hugged one another.  Trunks grinned up at his father and shrugged when he turned his questioning gaze to him.  Alihvan smiled at the reunion scene and Vil'Tani shrunk a little under the scrutinizing gazes of Videl and Vegeta.

Goten backed away from his bother and smiled at everyone, "Everyone, I'd like you to meet the new and improve Vil."  Goten said as he walked over and embraced his mate.  Vegeta, Gohan and Videl did a double take as they tried to connect this new look with her old.

Goten grinned sheepishly, "It's a rather… long story."  Goten said and began to retell the tale.  As Goten retold the story their expressions went through various transformations from sadness at the destruction of her race to surprise and astonishment when they learned of her evolving to speculation when Goten revealed his thoughts about Arthain and his opinions on what he said. After he finished everyone was left in a speculative mood as they tried to digest everything that Goten had revealed.

Videl was the first to speak up after Goten had finished, "I have my own thoughts but I doubt Vegeta will care very much about them so I won't say anything.  What I will say is that I'm glad there is another strong female out there other then me and my daughter, even if she is stronger then me.  It'll show these males that women can be just as strong if not stronger then them."  Videl said with a smile.

Vil'Tani smiled back, "Thanks Videl.  I'm sure we can get Chichi to join our elite group."  She said with a smile.

The faces of every male on the bridge dropped.  The thought of an evolved Chichi running around with thousands, if not tens of thousands, of ki pans under her mental domination sent more then just slivers of fear running up and down their spines.

Vegeta cleared his throat, "Ah, I think that's enough of that.  We need to focus on the matter at hand, namely the…" Vegeta couldn't finish as the topic he was about to bring up came to life on the viewing screen.  A massive shockwave ripped through the gathered star ships and bases as the rift unexpectedly tore open raggedly.  Vegeta looked over at the screen and cursed, "Ok fuck what I was going to say!  Everyone get to your fucking posts NOW!"  Vegeta roared as he jumped out of his seat.  "Send a message to everyone!  On my signal I want everyone throwing everything they got, even the kitchen sink, at those two super beings!  We only got one shot at this.  Arthain said that Aerie draws power as she needs it.  If we can hit her hard enough before she has drawn enough power we may be able to cripple her!"  Vegeta yelled, "Now get your fucking asses in gear and you had better not die on me!"  With that Vegeta bolted from the bridge of the flag ship.  The others swiftly followed, not wanting to be left behind.

Anticipation rippled through the fleets combining with the fear and trepidation that had been building.  When thousands of golden lights blasted out from the central flag ship hope blossomed in everyone.  The sight of that many evolved saiyans flying through space was a sight that instilled a sense of awe in everyone.  Everyone could now see what was happening clearly.  Aerie was pushing her way through the rift in the fabric of reality and Arthain was waiting for her.

As Aerie eased her way entirely into normal space the rift snapped shut behind her.  Aerie stretched and roared soundlessly as she celebrated her freedom from her prison.  Cyan energy lashed out in all directions snapping at both real and imaginary objects in the space around her.

**_HELLO AERIE…_**  Arthain boomed, his voice reaching the minds of everyone in attendance.  **_I_****_'_****_VE… MISSED YOU_**.

Arthain's voice pierced through the cloud of insanity that had been draped over Aerie's mind for many a millennia.  She blinked as if she had just woken from a dream; or more likely a nightmare.  She stared at the person in front of her and recognition dawned in her eyes.  Aerie stretched forth her hand pleadingly.

**_ARTHAIN… HELP… ME…_** She pleaded in the same booming voice as Arthain.  Her eyes were filled with pain and sadness greater and deeper then the greatest of black holes.

By this time the saiyans had arrived and were only several hundred meters from the two Implementors and were watching the exchange with interest.  All of them were wary, they had no idea if this was some part of a plan they had created or if it was actually genuine.

Arthain reached out and caught her hand in his, **_AERIE… I WANT TO BE WITH YOU… I… I CAN_****_'_****_T LIVE WITHOUT YOU ANY LONGER…_**

Aerie's eyes crinkled as both sadness and love shined through them.  She gripped his hand hard before the cloud enveloped her once more.  Aerie arched back and screamed for a second before she brought her eyes leveled with Arthain's once more.  This time there was no love, no pain, no sadness within them, just pure undulating insanity.  **_DIE! DIE! DIE!_** Aerie screamed as she slammed a planet shattering wall of force into Arthain.

Arthain rocked backwards and snarled in rage.  He had been denied his love so he would have his revenge.  Arthain lashed out and slammed his foot into Aerie's face faster then anyone could see.  Vegeta snarled and fired a multi-wave blast in all directions as he created the pre-determined signal.  Videl and Gohan quickly put their hands together and a moment later a huge shockwave enveloped the gathered saiyans as Vohdan was born.  Goten and Trunks nodded to one another and mimicked Videl and Gohan.  To everyone's surprise they fused like Videl and Gohan to become Gotenks.  Vegeta would have questioned them right then and there if he hadn't been pre-occupied.

There was a roar of engines, or there would have been had there been an atmosphere, as the ships started forward.  Millions of star fighters and tens of thousands of flag ships moved forward to engage the super beings.  Thus began the final Great War.  No war previous or any war in the future will ever reach the magnitude of the current.

When the ships got within firing range they let loose everything they had.  Countless missiles, energy beams, lasers and particle beams lashed forward from the various ships at Aerie.  They could worry about Arthain after they had removed her. The saiyans that had gathered to face the two head on began to unleash their own waves of energy with the greatest of them originating from the center where Vegeta, Gotenks, Vohdan and the others had gathered. 

Aerie screamed in pain as the attacks slammed into her.  Alone, even Vohdan's, they were nothing to her, but the sheer volume forced her to buckle and caused her real pain.  Arthain whirled around and snarled in anger.  Suddenly the saiyans found themselves dodging for their lives as Arthain's tendrils began to lash out at them with blinding speed.  Vohdan snarled and grabbed one of the tendrils as it tried to knock her away.  Arthain turned to regard her curiously only to get his face filled with an energy wave.

Arthain roared, spun, and slammed a foot into Vohdan before she could blink.  The fused saiyan found himself taking an unexpected trip through the stars until Kakkarot caught him.  Vohdan thanked him and blasted back towards the front lines.  Gotenks and Vegeta were managing to hold their own against the tendrils with the help of Alihvan and Vil'Tani but when Arthain turned his full attention upon them they soon became overwhelmed and were forced to flee.

**_ENOUGH OF THIS!_**  Arthain roared and sent a massive wall of force at the saiyans.  They all saw space rippling as the force lashed out at them but before it connected with the nearest saiyan it stopped and reversed direction.

Pan floated there with her hands outstretched and droplets of perspiration running down her face.  It was obvious to everyone just exactly what had happened.  Pan snarled in anger and roared as she went to the next level.  Her hair flashed up and turned pure white as psychic energy began to crackle up and down her body.  The veins on her body popped out and white light could be seen traveling through special veins in her body as her eyes lost their pupils and became swirling pools of white light.

In the mean time Aerie had begun to draw upon more power.  The increase in power made the onslaught of the ships affect her less and less until suddenly they didn't both her at all.  Aerie giggled hysterically and disappeared, only to reappear right behind Arthain and slam her head into the base of his back.  Arthain roared in agony as he rocked forward from the force of the blow.  Arthain spun to snarl at the perpetrator but only saw Aerie rushing off to assault the fleet of ships.

**_OH NO YOU DON'T!_**  Arthain roared and disappeared.  A shockwave followed by a scream of pain occurred a split second later as Arthain appeared in front of Aerie and slammed his fist into her jaw.  Aerie growled and wrapped her tendrils around Arthain and pulled him in.  Thousands of shockwaves sounded every second as Aerie slammed fist after fist into Arthain's body.  Arthain snarled in anger before he wrapped his tendrils together and wrapped them around Aerie's arms.  With them out of the way Arthain roared into her face and slammed a massive energy blast into her body.  The force of the explosion that erupted upon contact ripped her from Arthain's grasp and sent her tumbling back the way she came, only to come into contact with a boot from Vohdan.

Normally it would have done nothing but Vohdan was no longer evolved, she had gone beyond to the next level.  Aerie's momentum was halted and slightly reversed due to the contact with the long haired saiyan.  Vohdan stretched his hands out and unleashed a torrent of energy into Aerie's face creating a titanic explosion and rocking the behemoth backwards.  Aerie growled and grabbed the two nearest saiyans with her tendrils.  She slammed them together and began to roll them up with her mind.  Bones crushed and flesh split as the two saiyans were reduced to a sphere the size of a head.  Aerie brought her hands forward and the corpses exploded into a ball of liquid life force.  She quickly grabbed the life force and threw it at the saiyans. Suddenly the onslaught from the ships slammed into Aerie once more. The saiyans managed to dodge the ball of liquid fire but the star base in the distance didn't.  A huge flash of light blinded everyone momentarily as the star base exploded, decimating the forces around it.  Suddenly the air around Aerie was suddenly filled with fighters as they finally joined the fray.

Flashes of light from exploding fighters were the only warnings Vohdan got before Arthain slammed into him.  It was all Vohdan could do to live as blow after blow rained down upon her.  They were slamming into her so fast she had a hard time following them, not that it would matter because the force behind them were beyond anything she could have blocked anyways.  Suddenly Vohdan disappeared leaving Arthain extremely frustrated.  Vegeta had teleported in, grabbed the fused saiyan warrior, and teleported out before Arthain had had a chance to register that he was there.

Arthain was about to charge the saiyan ranks when suddenly Aerie's tentacles wrapped around his and began to swing him around in a circle.  After several circuits see released Arthain and fired an energy wave at him.    Two pairs of boots slammed into Aerie's as Gotenks and Vohdan took advantage of her diverted attention.  Aerie whipped around only to get a face full of energy blasts from the normal saiyans.  Gotenks, with lightning rippling up and down his body, quickly backed away before he started to slash at Aerie with his own attacks.

Meanwhile Arthain had just slammed into one of the moon sized star bases that used to surround the rift.  The star base started to implode but abruptly switched directions and exploded outwards.  The resulting explosion rivaled the death of a planet.  Needless to say the people within the nearby weapon platforms and star ships found themselves in an undesirable place as they were annihilated from the detonation.

A snarl broke out on Arthain's face as he blasted towards Aerie.  There was no way he was going to let someone else have his revenge.  There was no warning.  One moment Aerie was chasing around the saiyans and destroying star fighters by the thousands and the next she is fending off a huge wave of energy from Arthain.  The energy wave continued on beyond Aerie, but it didn't carry her with it.  She stood right where she had been, struggling to advance against the current so she could slam her fist into her mate's face.  Scores of saiyans died in the attack that was never meant for them, and thousands of others died as the wave continued on and through the fleet.  The energy would continue to travel through space until it collided with planet Namek a few days later reducing it, and the dragon balls, to ash.

Arthain's attack was violently halted as multiple high powered attacks slammed into his side.  Vegeta and Vohdan floated with their arms and legs outstretched side by side as they cork-screwed their attack around the others.  Multiple circles of runes had appeared in front of the attack causing it to accelerate exponentially so it hammered into Arthain just as Vil'Tani's and Gotenks' energy blasts had made contact with him.

Arthain roared for the first time in true agony as several of his tendrils were sheared off.  The tendrils themselves then exploded increasing the damage that was inflicted.  **_LEAVE HIM ALONE!_**  Aerie thundered in their skulls as she attempted to attack Arthain's attackers.  Attempted as in she was blocked as Kakkarot, Bardock, Brolly and Landyn lead the saiyans head first into battle against the creature.

Shockwaves and explosion lit space as bones crunched and saiyans died as Aerie lashed this way and that with her tendrils in her attempt to get through.  By the time she managed to get through the saiyan army had been severely reduced in numbers but it had bought the others time to prepare.  Only this time they had both Aerie and Arthain heading for them.

Vegeta shook his head in disbelief, _THIS IS INSANE!  What the hell is going on here!  This is the most fucking confusing battle I__'__ve ever participated in! You help one and the other turns on you!_ Vegeta thought as he stared at the oncoming super beings.  Bardock, Kakkarot, Brolly and Landyn unexpectedly appeared with the others and prepared to defend their friends and family.  The saiyan allies were desperately trying to aid but their weapons weren't doing much.

Suddenly something unprecedented happened, and it halted Arthain and Aerie in their tracks.  To Vegeta, Bardock and Gohan it reminded them of a repeat of what happened in the alternate reality.  This time millions of rifts suddenly appeared in space and shapes began to emerge from them.

_I figured you would need help so here I am and here'__s the help!_  The Dai Kaioshin telepathically communicated as he spear-headed the new assault.  It wasn't just the Gods and Elder Gods that had joined the battle, but the entirety of the west and east quadrants.  The announcement Trunks had made all those years back on planet Vegeta was literally heard by everyone.  It didn't take the other quadrants long to realize that if the north fell they would soon follow.

Vegeta stared around in surprise as the other quadrants unleashed their attacks with his own.  This time Aerie and Arthain felt something.  A grin creased Vegeta's face as hope renewed itself within him, and everyone else.  With a silent roar he charged up another attack.  He wasn't about to let the gods steal all the glory.  The other saiyans felt much the same way and soon powers were spiking through the roof.

The heroes were forced to fly backwards as they unleashed their energy.  The epicenter of the attack had erupted into a huge ball of fire that kept expanding.  The internal temperatures of the explosion began to exceed the heat given off from a super nova as the energy just kept building and building.  It had no where to go due to a constant stream of energy from every side.

Twin cries exploded inside the minds of everyone and people started to smile, but the smiles came too soon.  The cries weren't cries of just pain, but contained rage mixed in with it.  The rage soon manifested itself as the globe of fire erupted in every direction.  Screams of pain and agony were heard, but this time not from the insane immortals.  Gods and mortals died alike that day as the globe of fire rippled outwards.  The Ourian race poured all their energy into their shields in an attempt to protect as many ships as possible.  The saiyans did likewise and due to their efforts, and the distance from the center, the losses to the ships were kept due to a minimum.  The saiyans at the front line were not so lucky.  There was less the a hundred now left alive.  The rest had been reduced to ash in a single, agonizing moment.

The gods suffered the least but some had still fallen, their bodies floating where they had died.  Vohdan looked around in panic and stared in horror.  Her friends and family had been those closest to the attack and had paid for it.  A decimated Kakkarot was being held by an exhausted Bardock.  Kakkarot had thrown himself in front of Landyn and Bardock at the last moment and had received the brunt of the attack that had rained down upon those three.  Landyn wasn't in very good condition either.  He was holding his left shoulder with his right hand, his only hand, as he bent forward crying.  He had felt his mate die when the wave of fire rippled over the saiyans.  Alihvan and Vil'Tani had formed a wall with Gotenks and had aided each other.  Sweat dripped down their faces as they panted in exhaustion.  They had made it out without a scratch but their life force had been severely depleted.  Vegeta had survived completely unscathed, aside from his pride.  He glared down at the two insane beings with a look that would have killed a lesser creature.  When Vohdan spotted Brolly she noticed he was carrying something, or rather someone.  Something was wrong, there had been more then enough heat in the wave that rippled over them to hurt even him.  To anyone else it would have, should have, killed them.  Fearing the worst Vohdan flew towards Brolly, completely ignoring the Aerie and Arthain who were still roaring in rage.

It was as Vohdan feared, Brolly was carrying Pan.  Brolly quickly passed Pan over to her parents and flew off to see if he could help Kakkarot.  Vohdan looked down at Pan in horror.  Her hair had had become a grayish white color and white light no longer pulsed through her body.  On top of that her clothes were in tatters and burns and lacerations could be seen across her body.

_I'__m sorry mother… father…  I guess I over did it… _She said telepathically, _I just wanted to help…  I didn__'__t want to see anyone die so I…_ Pan stopped as she went through a hacking fit.  Blood started to trickle out of her mouth before she was able continue, _I absorbed the majority of the heat… I thought I could take it…  I guess I was wrong…_  Vohdan shook her head, she couldn't believe what she was hearing, she didn't want to believe it, _I__'__m sorry mommy… daddy… I just wished… wished I had found someone to… to love… to experience… what… you have… before I…_ Tears trickled from Pan's eyes and down her cheeks as a fountain of blood gushed from her mouth.  She closed her eyes in pain and shuddered violently before she slowly went limp.

Slowly Pan began to fade as she rose to heaven, taking her body with her.  Vohdan desperately tried to cling to it but it availed to nothing.  Pan was dead, gone, her life taken away long before it was due.  Vohdan curled up as the enormity of what happened finally slammed home.  Tears streamed from his eyes unchecked as sorrow and agony began to overwhelm him.  Suddenly everything stopped for an instant before it sped up again, carrying a ripple in reality with it.

Vohdan was no longer curled up; she was standing straight as she glared at Arthain and Aerie.  Tears still streamed down her face but as fast as the sorrow and agony was hitting her it was transforming, into rage.  A second pause and a second ripple in reality signaled the beginning.  A flash of light greater then anything that has ever preceded it blinded everyone as shockwaves of force slammed into them.  When they could see again they couldn't help but stare in surprise and trepidation as Vohdan roared silently in her globe of air.  The aura that was rippling around her was so intense it no longer needed air to stay ablaze, it was feeding itself.

Vohdan arched back and grew.  Her body could no longer sustain the amount of energy that her rage was providing for her so it did the only thing it could do to handle it, expansion.  Vohdan's height increased by nearly two feet as her muscles nearly doubled in size and density.  The saiyan battle armour expanded and refitted itself to her new form.  Her hair receded to become half its original length and changed to a solid gold colour as her eyes began to change.  Her eye split vertically as the cornea shifted and changed, carrying the iris along for the ride.  Golden energy began to leak from their depths.  A loud rip was heard as a second golden tail tore free from Vohdan's rear to lash at the air beside the first. Vohdan slowly leveled her malevolent gaze at Aerie and Arthain as the transformation ended.

The two had stopped their roaring after the first pause in time to eye the disturbance in curiosity.  By the second one tinges of trepidation began to seep into their hearts, and by the end of transformation, a transformation unlike anything even they have ever seen, real fear had found a niche.  Before Arthain could form a coherent thought a shockwave slammed into him from the side.  He quickly turned around and found Aerie double over as Vohdan slammed her fist into her.  Energy began to leak from the hole in Aerie's chest causing little explosions to detonate around the opening of the wound.

With a deft twist Vohdan ripped her arm out and palmed Aerie's face; her goal, the crystal where the rift in which Aerie drew her power was located.  Aerie's eyes widened in horror and cloud of insanity cleared from her mind.  She opened her mind to say something only to experience agony for the second it took Vohdan to dismember her.  The wave of energy that rippled out from Vohdan's hand was only just large enough to encompass Aerie's head, but it contained more power then the miniature super nova that had taken her daughters life.  Aerie's world crystal shattered causing the rift to destabilize and collapse. With Aerie's source of power destroyed, she soon followed.  Her body destabilized like the rift but unlike it, her body and head exploded as the energy she had already gathered was let loose.

Vohdan stretched his hand forward and created a shield around the epicenter of the detonation to protect everyone against it.  When the fires had subsided Vohdan turned her gaze upon Arthain.  She was about to eradicate him as well when something made her stop.  Arthain wasn't staring at her, but where Aerie had once been.  

Slowly Arthain bowed his head as tears started to stream down his face.  Arthain slowly raised his trembling hands to his face, **_WHAT_****_'_****_S THE POINT! WHY! GOD DAMNIT…!  ALL I WANTED WAS TO BE WITH HER!  IN ANY WAY… ANY FORM…  FUCK!  GOD DAMN THIS STUPID FUCKING CRYSTAL! _**Arthain roared inside the minds of everyone.  With a swift movement he plunged his hand into his chest.  With a shudder of pain he tore the crystal from his torso and threw it away.

A second explosion rippled outwards as the extra energy Arthain had gathered exploded outwards.  A very surprised Vohdan erected a second barrier to prevent this energy from hurting anyone else.  When the fire cleared a badly wounded Arthain floated in space.  He wasn't dead but he was bleeding from many wounds and would die without treatment.  Vohdan's eyes narrowed and she raised her hands to finish the job.

Suddenly a hand clamped down upon her arm.  She was about to scold whoever it was, until she realized it was the Dai Kaioshin.  He had survived the fire wave but not unscathed, very few managed that feat.  She looked at him with furious eyes and was about to demand an explanation when she got one, one that everyone received. _There has been enough killing this day, and there is nothing that you, or I, could do to place him in any greater agony.  His body is ruined almost beyond repair but it pales in comparison to the mental pain he is feeling, and even that pales in comparison to the emotional pain.  Letting him live is the worst thing you can possibly do to him_. The Dai Kaioshin explained.

Vohdan opened his mouth to protest but the Dai Kaioshin shook his head vigorously, Knowing when to stop is sometimes more important than knowing when to start.  _This war is ended, but one last thing remains unfinished._ The Dai Kaioshin turned to regard Alihvan, _I have a favour to ask of you_.

Alihvan approached nervously, _Ahh… What may that be?_ She said as she joined the Dai Kaioshin's mental conversation with everyone.

The elder supreme god sighed as he lifted the crystal in his hands.  _Twice now a world crystal has been taken, and twice it has corrupted.  The Implementor of your reality was originally from this one… he was my son.  I think I have come to realize something.  No one from this reality can safely handle the world crystal for this reality so on that note…  I ask if you are willing to take it up, to prevent it from corrupting anyone else._ The Dai Kaioshin answered startling everyone.  

Gotenks suddenly split apart and Trunks rushed towards Alihvan.  Alihvan turned to regard Trunks sadly, _I__'__m sorry Trunks…  I had wanted it to mean so much more but… sometimes one must sacrifice their happiness for the happiness of all.  Good-bye Trunks._  Alihvan said as she turned and nodded to the Dai Kaioshin, _I accept and am ready._

The Dai Kaioshin nodded and placed the crystal between Alihvan's breasts.  She gasped as it pierced her skin and took up residence inside of her.  This time the crystal dissolved instead of remaining solid.  Arthain had only been half right when he said he knew where Aerie had gone wrong.  He knew where to place it, but he didn't know how to absorb it properly, because he was of this reality.

Trunks reached out with his hand and screamed silently as Alihvan underwent her transformation.  Unlike the previous two times a world crystal had been absorbed the transformation didn't kill anyone, in fact it did the opposite.  She grew and transformed into a thirty foot being of glowing blue runes as her goddess powers joined with the energy from the crystal.  A wave of bluish white energy rippled out from her but it didn't harm anyone, it healed them.  All those that had been hurt found their wounds instantly healed but the energy didn't stop there.  It washed across the entire universe healing every planet, every creature, and even the universe itself as Alihvan became the missing piece it needed to be revived.

Vohdan sighed powered down to the first evolutionary stage before the two split into Gohan and Videl.  Videl buried her face into Gohan's chest as she cried out her loss.  Gohan gently rubbed her back as tears streamed down his face as well.  He had lost a father and a daughter this day.  He thought he was prepared for the cost that would be incurred, but it wasn't enough.  It never is.  

Alihvan turned to regard Trunks, a wisp of energy gently brushed his face. **_I_****_'_****_M SORRY TRUNKS… BUT I HAVE TO GO, THE UNIVERSE IS STILL IN PAIN, AND I MUST HEAL IT.  PERHAPS I'_****_LL SEE YOU AGAIN, SOMETIME IN THE FUTURE.  GOODBYE_****.   **Alihvan turned, not able to bare the stricken look that had appeared on Trunks' face.  A portal opened and Alihvan stepped through it to another part of space, another aspect of that reality, to heal the wounds that had been inflicted.

Vegeta sighed, it was over, after so much work and preparation, it was over.  One glance at his son made him shake his head in despondency.  For the first time since he had been born, Vegeta wished that the battle had never occurred.  The losses that had they had sustained were too great in his opinion. Vegeta turned to watch as the flag ship, Arganon, slowed and stopped near him.  The few normal saiyans that had survived left the battlefield and re-boarded the ship.  They were all tied, exhausted and just plain weary of battle.  They had fought something which they could barely comprehend let alone fight and survived.  They would never again come up against anything as powerful as Aerie and Arthain.  Saiyans lived for the ultimate battle, and that battle was what they had received.  They could die old men, never fighting another battle, and still be content.  After all, what were little spars and skirmishes to them when they had fought, won, and survived against not one, but two beings of infinite power.

The heroes took it as their cue to return as well.  Bardock and Landyn slowly returned to the ship without Kakkarot's body.  It had disappeared like Pan's, meaning he had been allowed to keep it after death.  Brolly soon followed, not having anywhere else to go, or anyone to comfort.  Goten and Vil'Tani were beside Trunks talking to him quietly as the attempted to comfort him.  Gohan and Videl were slowly making their way to the ship; Videl was still clinging to Gohan as she continued to cry.  Gohan looked as if he wanted to join but he had to be the supportive one.  He could do his crying later.

That only left one other, Arthain. Vegeta snapped his gaze towards Arthain's known location and found him there sitting dejectedly.  He was lost now, no one to be with, no home to return to, no emotions to feel.  His love and rage had been burnt out leaving the shell of a saiyan in its place.  Vegeta turned and left him were he was.  He wasn't about to trust Arthain and invite him on board the ship, even if they had the power to easily beat him now.

Vegeta finally brought his gaze to bear upon the elder gods.  With a slight movement of his head he indicated the ship.  The Dai Kaioshin nodded his agreement and they all went inside.  It was much easier to talk when they all shared the same parcel of air.  A few minutes later Goten and Vil'Tani had convinced Trunks to return to the ship.

Arthain watched them all leave and laughed bitterly to himself.  In the end he was alone, just like in the beginning.  He stood up and sighed.  He really hated being a saiyan, but it made it easier to get around, and made it easier to find love. '_God damn it…  I hate this…  I just want to go home… at least I found some happiness with Aerie__… __at least for a brief time.  Damn it… the harder I try to hold onto something the faster it slips from my grasp…'_ Arthain had lied about a few things.  He hated lying.  He usually relied on word manipulation to get a person to believe what he wanted them to without having to rely on lies but sometimes that was impossible.  There had only been 5 saiyans born evolved: Aerie, Arganon, Warpath, Vegeta and Raven.  He had born human in a different time, a different dimension.  When he was young the human race had made first contact with a highly peaceful and sophisticated alien race, but one that seemed to enjoy genetically manipulating 'volunteers'.  Arthain sighed as he looked down at his hands; he had lost all rights to his birth name when he had lost his humanity.  He had been taken at a young age and forced to undergo experiments… all of which had gone wrong.  The aliens hadn't understood what was happening, until he started to evolve.  The human race as a whole had reached the edge of the next tier in evolution, and the aliens had interrupted that evolution in him.  The result was Arthain.  He had been changed so much from his fellow humans that he no longer fit in.  Loneliness became the word that best described his life.  Shape shifter would be a word most would apply to him but that wasn't quite right.  His mind and body adapted and warped into the shape of the species that was best suited to the environment he was in.  He had little or no say over the changes.  When his special abilities became known he had rose to the top of the list of those that would be sent to new, unexplored and possibly dangerous locations.  To everyone's surprise he survived each endeavor which only increased the want for his special abilities.  Then came the day he would live to regret for the rest of his life.  The inter-galatic council had developed a machine capable of matching two points in reality together and drill a hole connecting the two realities together.  Since this was the ultimate exploratory expedition he was immediately called upon. He and several other hand picked specialists and individuals were called upon for the expedition.  Their ship had gotten through just fine but their passing had done something irrevocable.  Their anti-matter engines released particles in the space between realities that was not supposed to be there.  The result was the immediate collapse and explosion of the rift behind them.  The last thing they saw through the rift before it closed was the machine exploding and their reality unwinding as it began to collapse.  They only had a glimpse because the explosion on their side of the rift took out their engines and navigational devices causing them to crash onto a nearby super planet: The ancient saiyan home world.  They could see everything on their monitors and they feared the worst as the weapons on the orbiting platforms pointed themselves at them.  Fortunately the saiyans realized that they were in no position to do anything about their predicament.  It was at that point that his body had started to change.  This reality had the ultimate species, one that evolved and adapted to situations, just like him, Saiyans.  Arthain sighed as he remembered back to that fateful day when everything changed.  The ship they had was sturdy and could have survived the impact, had he not exploded.  His body and mind had shifted and adapted to the situation, meaning he found himself as an evolved saiyan with more power then he had any clue what to do with.  He still remembered the sensation of the merge with the crystal.  Its power rushed into and joined with his awakening energy, it was more then he had been able to handle.  He had blacked out but when he came to he had been staring into the face of the most beautiful women he had ever seen, Aerie.  He faked amnesia quite easily because he literally knew nothing about that reality.  Thus had started his new life, one in which he had found happiness and love.  But like everything in his life it didn't last.  After several hundred years, a blink of an eye to him, Aerie had absorbed the crystal.  He had lied when he said he didn't know the reason why she did that.  He knew she had wanted to impress him; to show him that she was just as capable as he was.  

Arthain sighed and shoved his hands into the pockets of his new pants.  He no longer needed the saiyan battle armour.  He now wore black khaki's with a pair of black shorts and boxers underneath.  Covering his torso was a white T-shirt with a silver dragon clawing at a black and white ying-yang.  There was a silver ring gracing the index finger of his right hand with an intricate repeating pattern engraved into it and a chain hanging from his neck with a circular locket on the end with the picture of his parents in it.  Arthain rubbed his right hand through his yellow hair as he thought on what to do next.  His survival instincts were too great to allow him to die, and although his bond with Aerie had been broken with her death it wouldn't kill him.  He was nothing after all.

"One place is as good as another." Arthain said quietly aloud.  He wasn't looking forward to the next few centuries.  He was old, far older then anyone suspected.  They only knew his age based upon his arrival into this reality.  He wondered what the would think if they realize that, despite how long he has lived here, it accounted for little more then a fraction of his entire age.  The genetic manipulations had done more then just rip away his humanity.

A jolt startled Arthain as he felt something enter him.  He shook his head in amusement.  Apparently Alihvan was giving the saiyans a second chance, not unexpected considering who she loved.  Arthain shook his head and flashed across the sky, being careful not to hurt anyone else.  His hands were already covered in more blood then he would ever be able to wash off.

Alihvan watched Arthain go with a sad shake of her head.  She hadn't known that he had been through so much.  It explained many, not all but those can be explained by his case of insanity, of his actions, both in the present and in the past.  Arthain's entire history had flashed open for Alihvan to read and she had read it with great interest and curiosity.  Anger and hate had been replaced with pity.  Alihvan sighed as she went on with her work.  There was much to do and so little time to do it in. 

The End… Or is it?

Oh my god… SO evil me… LOL! AHAHAH TAKE THAT ARTHAIN!!  YOU ARE ALONE IN MY STORY JUST LIKE I AM IN REAL LIFE! EAT IT UP!  …. Ahh…. Sorry.

Arthain is all alone… there's no dragon balls… Pan is dead… Kakkarot is dead… Trunks is alone after coming so close… AHAH!  I'm evil :)

The only reason Vohdan was able to kill Aerie so easily was because he/she was much stronger and overpowered her before she was able to gain the energy required to face her on equal footing.  If Vohdan had given Aerie the time, Aerie could have smacked him/her around like there was no tomorrow.

Vohdan's and Goten's power levels… well you can calculate them yourself.  I gave the multiplications of each level of super saiyan in the last chapter.  The only person you'd really want to know would be Vil'Tani.

Vil'Tani 'The' Cerian – 175,453,000

Well, I liked this chapter he he, all that's left is the epilogue.  


	24. Epilogue

A/N: A true epilogue, might as well, it is the very last thing I will write for this alternate universe, I think you'll like this.

A/N: Thanks SSJ_ChibiGoten, for proof reading my story again, but alas, now it has come to a close. I guess that forces you out of the job, hehe.

**Epilogue**

Many pairs of eyes watched as Arthain flew away, the most important pairs residing within the council chamber on the flag ship Arganon. Vegeta had seated himself at his usual place at the head of the table with Gohan sitting to Vegeta's right with his mate. To Gohan's right sat Bardock. Trunks sat to Vegeta's left and beside him was Goten and Vil'Tani. Brolly and Landyn leaned against the wall behind Vegeta while the elder gods, the five that had survived, were seated around the other side of the table. They watched Arthain fly away on the viewing screen with differing thoughts in each of their heads.

"Aren't we going to chase him down and finish him?!" Landyn snarled out in anger.

Vegeta leaned back to look him in the eyes, "I was told not to. I would have disobeyed but… the Dai Kaioshin isn't someone you want to cross." Vegeta replied.

Landyn looked up and glared at the elder supreme god, "Explain! Why the hell can't we kill him? He killed my mate and took my arm!" Landyn snapped.

The Dai Kaioshin smiled benevolently, "Because there has been enough death already. If you are looking to inflict pain on him don't bother. He is already in more agony then you could ever give him."

"I doubt that! You saw him laughing! We all did!"

Dai Kaioshin smiled faintly, "I forgot you were too clouded with anger and rage to see clearly. Didn't you see his face? His expression? But most importantly, did you see his eyes? He's dead on the inside. You couldn't hurt him if you tried." he said.

Landyn grumbled and opened his mouth to protest but Vegeta held up at hand silencing him, "Let it go Landyn. He's gone now, and he didn't try to kill anyone as he left. Remember he was completely insane when he committed all those acts of violence, and what he did to you… It was war, or at least classified in the same category. Neither side can be held accountable for the losses incurred. Both sides lost so leave it." Vegeta said firmly.

"What do you mean we lost?" Landyn asked, his anger suddenly gone.

Vegeta sighed and looked back, "This battle was not about winning, it was about surviving. We survived, for the most part. No one wins in a conflict. Neither side is willing to give up until they've lost more then they are able to handle. We lost, he lost, but we survived and that is what matters." Vegeta answered, "Now no more about killing him. Does anyone know what the hell he was wearing? I've never seen clothing like that."

The others saiyans nodded in agreement. The Dai Kaioshin just smiled and shook his head, "No, you haven't, because I've never seen their like before either…." The elder supreme god trailed off as he fell into contemplation.

Gohan sighed and rubbed a hand across Videl's back, "Alright, enough of this. I think it would be proper to hold a general council of every ruler/leader. This is the first time we have had everyone together in known history. This could be a good opportunity to form some additional contacts and alliances." Gohan suggested.

Vegeta smiled, "That has some interesting possibilities." Vegeta said and turned to look at the elder gods. "I don't suppose you would mind setting up some sort of council room? Preferably bigger then this one." Vegeta turned to Videl, "I'm sorry Videl but do you think you could survive without your mate for a day? I know you've just lost your daughter but you'll have plenty of time to mourn later." Vegeta said as he attempted to comfort Videl.

Videl smiled sadly at Vegeta, "I suppose I can. I've done my crying, for now…" She replied.

Vegeta nodded and turned to the gods, "So… What will it be? If not I'll do it the hard way."

"I don't see any reason as to why not." Thus began the Inter-Quadrant Coalition and its first meeting. When the elder gods left the ship to construct the council hall they had found it already constructed and a smug Alihvan floating before it. The structure was huge. A massive spherical structure made up the central part of the building and would be where the council sessions would be held. Jutting out from the central structure were multiple platforms and buildings. These served as docking points and consisted of multiple restaurants, stores and rooms to rest. Those parts of the building weren't operational as there were no workers but it would be by the next meeting. Alihvan just shrugged when they gave her a questioning look and beckoned them to enter. The other leaders didn't need to be contacted because Alihvan had also taken care of that as well. It didn't take long for the leaders to seat themselves in the main council room. Vegeta presided over the council as he attempted to establish influence in every quadrant. Gohan sat beside him offering his advice and speaking up from time to time. By the end of the session they had gotten what they had wanted and had given nothing in return.

Several laws and rules passed during the session. There would be one council session pure year unless there was something substantial happening that required immediate attention. One person would be elected to preside over the meeting and naturally Vegeta was chosen to preside over the first and was elected for the second as well. Trade agreements and alliances were created but much to the dismay of the other quadrants every race in the north quadrant was position firmly behind Vegeta and to get to them they forced the others to go through him. One thing was passed that everyone agreed upon. Should another incident like what had just come to pass come again, a danger that threatened the existence of everything, they would all join forces to defeat it no matter the diplomatic relations.

Another law that was passed, and this one by the supreme elder god himself, was an order to leave Arthain alone. The Dai Kaioshin gave his reasons, some worthwhile and some not, but in the end he finished with saying that anyone who actively sought out Arthain with an intent to harm him for no reason other then what had occurred during the battle would be answering to him personally.

When Vegeta and Gohan returned to the ship later that day they both had equally smug looks upon their faces. After that the races went back to their respective planets to recover from the battle. The Elder God's returned to their place above the universe and began to actively monitor the universe. That this incident was able to reach the proportions that it had showed them that they needed to start doing their jobs.

Everyone moved on with their lives. Gohan and Videl never got over the death of their daughter and loved Eyan to death. The little guy hardly had a time to himself, but being a good natured boy he didn't mind. He rather enjoyed all of the attention. Chichi didn't need to receive word Kakkarot's death, she had felt it in her heart and through her bond. She would have emotionally collapsed had Goten and Vil'Tani not been there to support her. The thought of grand kids already on their way helped bring her back into the light of the world.

Another year passed and another council session finished. Trunks, Goten and Vil'Tani graduated from the academy but Trunks was still as melancholy as he was at the end of the fight with the super beings. Trunks sighed as he stared up at the ceiling from his position on his back in his bed. He still thought of Alihvan often. They hadn't been together for more then a month but she had left her mark upon him. He had found and lost the perfect women, he wouldn't be able to love another. Riho and Cain had gotten together during the last year. Arsenic was still deciding who he wanted to be with. The girls had swarmed him since he was now both an elite and a normal saiyan.

Another sigh escaped from Trunks lips as he rolled over and tried to go to sleep. Sleep had been hard to come by with Alihvan haunting his every dream. When the door to his room opened he began grouchy. He wasn't in any mood to deal with his father or mother at the moment.

"Go away! I just want to sleep!" Trunks snapped without bothering to turn around to see who it was who had entered.

A loud exaggerated sniff was heard behind him when suddenly a voice spoke that made his eyes snap open, "What! You want me to leave! Fine… I suppose I can do that…" Alihvan said sorrowfully and silently approached the bed as she made her footsteps sound as if she was leaving.

Trunks bolted and turned around, "WAIT!" He shouted only to find her at the edge of his bed.

She smiled down at him, "Wait? Go? Which one do you want me to do Trunks? Better make up your mind!" She said teasingly.

Trunks blushed, "I want you to stay…" Trunks blinked for a moment, "What… I… You were a huge blue glowing being before. Why do you look like you did before you accepted the crystal? Is it gone now?" Trunks asked.

Alihvan smiled and shook her head, "Yes I was a big glowing being but that doesn't mean anything. I can be anyone or anything, any size or any gender. It's rather hard to walk through this room if I was thirty feet tall so I decided to take my mortal form." She said with a whimsical smile, "As for the crystal…" She lifted her shirt over her head and pointed at the spot between her breasts which had a rather distinct glow radiating from it, "It's still here, right where it was placed… My Trunks you're blushing. Never seen a topless girl before?" She asked innocently causing Trunks to blush even more.

Alihvan laughed and caressed Trunks' face. "It's rather lonely being an Implementor… so… I was kind of wandering… Well if it's alright with you I wouldn't mind having a companion to be by my side as I take care of the universe." She said tentatively. Trunks stared up at her in surprise at the request, Alihvan shrugged, "If you don't I'll under…" She wasn't able to finish because she suddenly found herself pulled down into a passionate kiss.

Alihvan was startled at first but she soon relaxed and gave into her desires. There was another reason to her offer. She did love Trunks, but she was new and she needed help. It would be several million years before she would have been able to efficiently handle the universe by herself. When that time comes it'll be just that much easier to manage it with Trunks by her side and as the ruler of the most powerful race in the quadrant, her chosen race. 

What occurred in that room that night went beyond the ability of mortal words to describe as both Alihvan and Trunks got what they both desired more then anything else: Someone to love, and someone to return the love with equal fever. That wasn't the only miracle that happened that night.

Gohan and Videl were sitting in their living room playing with Eyan when their front door slowly opened up. The two looked up and was about to scold the interloper when their words died in their throat. An 8 year old Pan stood in front of them waving shyly. She retained her memories and her powers but she had been given the body she should have had. There were slight modifications to it so it was able to handle the excessively large amounts of life force in it.

"High mom, dad… I'm back… Alihvan said that since she was now in charge things should go her way and I guess that way involved me being alive." Pan said quietly.

Gohan and Videl, with Eyan in her arms, rushed forward to embrace their daughter. Tears of joy were spilled that night as many families were rejoined. Kakkarot returned to Chichi much to her delight and Alysa came back for Landyn.

Alihvan had said she was going to heal the universe, and the meant healing 'all' the damage caused by the battle, including bringing back to life those who had perished. Much to Brolly's delight Karie returned as well. Alihvan hadn't been able to bring her back but she had been able to reconstruct her with the memories she had had before her untimely death. With help from the Implementor of her reality they were able to create Karie's spirit anew and place it within a new body for her.

Although joy was experienced across the universe one person wasn't celebrating. He merely stared up at the night sky and wondered if he would ever find happiness.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A year later (2 after the great battle)…

Arthain sighed as he stared at the fire in the pit he had constructed. He had felt hollow and empty after the fight and it hadn't changed with the years. If anything it grew deeper and more intense. The fire crackled as a log crumbled sending sparks and ash scattering across the night sky. It eased him to look into a real fire. It filled him with warmth he would never feel again.

He had been hiding for the past couple years. He had no desire to contact any civilization, and they were content to ignore him if he left them alone. The little races were moving alone quite fine. Alihvan it seemed had been a good choice for an Implementor. It hadn't come as much of a surprise to him when he felt Trunks join her although he had a hunch it surprised many others.

Arthain smiled ruefully as he imaged Vegeta brimming with pride and boasting that it was 'his' son that had mated with the Implementor and, in doing so, become one himself. Arthain also had the feeling that Alihvan, and the gods, had forgiven him for his actions. He came to that conclusion based on the fact that he would be dead now, or fighting for his life, if they hadn't.

Arthain stood and cleared a small patch of ground to sleep upon. He looked at his arm and shook his head ruefully again. Things may have gone differently if he hadn't been so afraid to show his hidden secrets. Fitting in was always the hardest thing for him to do; now it didn't matter though.

"Computer, bed please, on the patch of cleared ground one foot, 3 inches in front of me." Arthain spoke softly to his left arm.

A small hole in his arm appeared as a small spherical shaped organic computer rose from his arm. The top and bottom halves separated a little revealing highly sophisticated internal parts. A beam of light appeared from the computer and pierced the ground. A few seconds later the computer had finished and returned into his arm. Arthain smiled sadly and approached the bed that had been created. It wasn't much more then two really thick blankets piled together but it was better then a cold hard ground. One of the special components of his computer was the ability change the atomic structure of all but the smallest atoms.

The most complex and high technological devices of this universe paled in comparison to what was common in his reality, even during the time of the ancient saiyans. His home had been the center of technological advancements, a place that no longer existed because they sought to explore that which should have been left unexplored.

Arthain sighed again; there wasn't any point on dwelling on the past. The present and future were bleak enough without adding the past to it as well. Arthain stripped down to just his shorts and boxers and slid inside the blankets and tried to get some rest. He sighed yet again; he had forgotten a pillow like he had every previous night. Also like the other nights he just fished around for a large rock and used that to rest his head upon. His head was, after all, harder then a rock now that he was a saiyan.

He was starting to drift asleep when a shadow passed between him and the fire. Faster then few could see he whipped around and prepared for an attack but was stopped dead in his tracks. She stood before him wearing a loose fitting white sleeveless shirt and baggy brown pants. A blue bandana was wound around her head and she wore a pair of studded earrings. Gracing her right hand was a fingerless leather glove with a matching leather bracer on the same arm. The woman possessed green eyes and spikey yellow hair. 

"You're rather hard to find love…" Aerie said softly as she sat down in front of him. "It took nearly a year to track you down, but I don't mind, because now I've found you."

Arthain was still speechless. He had never, even in his wildest dreams, thought that he would ever see her again.

Aerie frowned and looked at the discarded clothing. She picked up the pants and fingered the material. "You've been wearing some odd clothing Arthain. I've never seen anything like these, although I like where they are." Aerie said as she smiled at Arthain, "You always did look better in the nude then fully clothed."

Arthain stared at her and tears began to trickle down his face, "Aerie… I… I'm sorry." He said.

Aerie looked at him curiously, "Why?" Aerie asked when her face lit up, "Oh! I see now, it's because you couldn't 'save' me right? Don't worry about that. You did your best. It's my fault that I took the crystal. I won't try that again." She said with a little laugh before she looked at him again, "That's not it? Hmm… was it because you felt naughty thoughts about another woman while I was gone?" She asked suspiciously.

Arthain shook his head, "No… for lying to you… to everyone." Arthain said sadly. He couldn't live this lie any longer.

Aerie looked at him in curiosity, "Lying? What are you talking about?" She asked curiously, "Don't tell me you were lying about loving me when we mated." She said in a dangerous tone.

Arthain laughed bitterly, "No… that was the truth. I loved you beyond the ability for words to express, and still do. I wouldn't be feeling this alone and empty if I didn't." Arthain said sadly.

Aerie smiled brightly, "Then I don't see how it matters all that much to me." She said with happiness evident in her voice.

"You may not think that after what I tell you…" He said sadly.

That got her attention and she began to look at him with worry, "You didn't… betray me did you?" She asked quietly.

He shook his head, "I couldn't if I tried. I'd kill myself before I willing slept with another woman. Please… just… hear me out and don't do anything rash until you hear everything." Arthain said quietly.

Aerie nodded and sat in a more comfortable position as she waited for the story. Arthain cleared his throat, "I can… show you what I mean but… I'll only be able to hold it for a few seconds but… it'll be enough to show you." Arthain said and stood up, conscious of Aerie's gaze following him.

Arthain grimaced in determination as he forced his body to return to its original shape, if only for a moment. Aerie's eyes widened in surprise, surprise that turned to shock as Arthain's body shifted and morphed.

The hair receded to stand only an inch off the top of his head. His eyes changed colors and possessed and iris unlike any other species in the universe. Brown/green eyes with black pupils stared out from a race that was entirely human, yet inhuman. Veins were popping out all over his face and body. His entire right arm consisted of organic metal while his right was something so alien that it couldn't possibly be natural. Like Arthain said he was only able to keep it for a second before his body reverted back to what it had been, a saiyan.

Arthain slowly sat down and sighed in melancholy, "As you can see, I'm not a saiyan. I never was. You, and everyone else, thought that I was a saiyan that had been drugged and captured by aliens… I wasn't. I am… or was… a human. I'm a product of a genetic experiment gone wrong due to my species imminent evolution. Due to the genetic manipulation that my body had undergone I lost my humanity and became… something else. I became nothing. My body changes and adapts depending on the environment I am in. Because of that I was the perfect person to send on explorations to uncharted areas of space. I always performed better then anyone thought possible so when… well let's make this shorter. The people I was working for found a way to make holes between realities, like the saiyan race was able to do. I was sent through it, along with several others, the people you found. We crashed on your planet when the rift we came through destabilized destroying my reality and crippling my ship. I said earlier that my body adapts to the environment… and boy I was surprised when I found myself evolving right there in the middle of the ship. I turned into a saiyan and can no longer become anything else because I've changed into the ultimate species. I faked amnesia when you found me… It was rather… easy to fake it because I honestly knew nothing of this reality at the time. That, in part, led you to take the crystal. I was always one step ahead of you, but it wasn't your fault that you couldn't get stronger. My body simply adapted to protect itself, to stay the strongest. That part of me no longer exists. If I wish to get stronger now I have to earn it. When you transformed my body realized how futile it was to try to stay one step ahead of everything and just stopped trying… Anyways I am sorry… for not telling the truth sooner. It's just that I thought that perhaps I could start over… and live the life I had always wanted. A happy one with someone to love and children to care for…" Arthain trailed off quietly.

Aerie was staring at Arthain in surprise. She wouldn't have believed a word of what he had just said if he hadn't changed before her very eyes. Aerie shook her head slowly as she pressed a hand to her temple, "So… let me get this straight… You're not a saiyan? You're some weird genetic experiment gone wrong that had a case of bad luck and landed on the saiyan planet?" She asked incredulously.

Arthain nodded slowly, "Like I said I'm sorry."

Aerie "I know I heard you…" Aerie said. Suddenly Arthain found himself bowled over as Aerie pounced on him.

"Well you're MY failed genetic experiment!" Aerie said and laughed naughtily.

Arthain's eyes widened in surprise, "You mean you don't… care?" Arthain asked.

Aerie snorted, "Of course not. You said it yourself all those years ago. It's not what's on the outside that counts, it's what's on the inside, and on the inside you're just a sweet, sensitive, caring person who has had to live through hell with no relief. Well no longer, relief is here!" Aerie said happily and kissed him soundly.

Arthain smiled as he felt a warm feeling develop in the pit of his stomach and inside his heart. Aerie tapped her chin thoughtfully as she contemplated something. She looked down at Arthain and smiled again, "I think our bond was broken when I died. I don't suppose it would be too much trouble to form it again?" Aerie asked as she arched an eyebrow, "Like I mean I'm dieing to know if you're still as good as you were all those years ago." She said with a wicked smile on her face.

Arthain laughed and kissed her, "Why don't we find out?" Arthain said as a wicked smile creased his face as well.

Aerie's laugh tinkled through the night sky as Arthain rolled her over and positioned himself on top of her. The two smiled at one another lovingly a moment before they kissed each other passionately. That night one man attained the dream he had wished all his life and never let it go, not even in death.

The universe never encountered another threat like the one it had just experienced. Trunks and Alihvan saw to it that all the species of the universe were kept safe. That wasn't to say wars never broke out, but nothing ever occurred that threatened to endanger everything, or even the existence of any species. Alihvan kept an eye on everything from her place in the sky while Trunks watched from his throne.

Many adventures would happen in the future, both grand and small. After all, Trunks and Alihvan needed things to watch and enjoy. But those are stories for another time… and perhaps another writer.

… The End

There, how was that? Suitable enough? I liked it… especially since Arthain IS me… Got any questions, see any plot holes that you would like explained, or just need an explanation for something a little vague just let me know in a review (and give your e-mail) and I'll answer them.

Alright, for my next story, it's going to be completely original but I'm not going to post it unitl after next Christmas because ti is a Christmas present for my parents.  They should be the first to read it, but that's just my opinion but wait… that's all that matters, hehe.  Anyways I may do a little side thing, like very few updates, probably only happen when I grow bored of everything else at the same time.  This one is a Gohan story, here are a overview of the two, very vague overview.

1) Gohan (after Buu saga) is sent to the past when he attempts to go super when in mystic form. The resulting unleashing of power rips a rift in space and time (much like what Buu did when Vegetto was whooping his ass.) and is pushed, by some mysterious force (me, but I won't have any direct part in the story, I can only affect events indirectly), into the past for a specific purpose, to fix to Multi-verse. (Major A/U because Gohan and Videl never became lovers, they were friends. It'll be a Gohan/OC story.)

2) Write a completely original story. I'd have to make a new account on Fiction Press (I think anyways) to post it. It'll be on a world of my choosing with heroes/villains that I create. One thing about this… It's not about good triumphing over evil, its evil triumphing over good. You'll read a story from the OPPOSITE perspective. You'll read from the side of evil. The main character will be named Arthain, and it's not me, I just like the name so I'll be using it as the main character.

For both I would have to go through a major planning and development phase before I begin because in the Gohan one I would have to have a really major deep plot to prevent it from being majorly cheesy. That's the reason I want to write that one, because I've only read 1 non-cheesy Gohan is sent into the past story and that's Contradicting Mission and I want to contribute another. I've already started the Gohan outline (waiting for my proof reader to finish proof reading chapter 22) and my god… It'll be more original then THIS story! Lol! Only 2 main characters will be from the series/movies and the rest are original. I was only going to do it for a single little purpose but I figure you people need a good story that involves more then Gohan going back to the past and scaring the saiyans shitless with his power. 

As for the original well it's obvious. It was easy to get attached to the characters in my story because you were already attached to many of them, ie. Gohan, Videl, Pan, Chichi, Goten and Trunks, all of them. So all I had to do was develop a few side characters and poof. Anyways I was wondering which one you wouldn't mind seeing. I personally want to do both equally although the Gohan sent to the past one would probably more then likely be FAR shorter then the original story. Although I would NOT be starting the story until mid December because it's November and I got finals in a month. I don't want a story in progress distracting me from my studies. A final is NOT something that should be screwed around with and left to the end. But what I will do is plan out each story before finals, I can do that at least. BECAUSE I am planning them out you had better expect to find many subtle hints, and neat little things. I'm not going to give any hints this time in A/N notes so you'll have to figure it out on your own. I'm also going to try to give these stories more depth then the one I just finished. 

Thank you everyone that took the time to review. I know I didn't ask for any but they were appreciated none-the-less. It made me feel as if my story was actually worth writing and at times helped me keep going. Thanks to those that had the patience to stick it out from the beginning. I know there were times when months would pass when no chapter was created but you stuck with it. I have a hard time starting but once the story starts rolling I can usually just pump the chapters out.

I would like to give thanks to a place called Abysmal Realms. No one who reads this probably knows about it but that's where I got just about all of my original names from. Abysmal Realms is basically an online, completely text base, game that is quite similar to Advance Dungeons and Dragons.

The names I took from AR were:  
The Rune Lords (all of them, Gahlanthas is actually the name of my cousins character)  
Varitech (He was the most feared killer in the entirety of the game, he's a legend there, mostly because he stopped playing)  
Warpath (my old character)  
Arthain (the name I currently use for everything)  
Arsenic (An annoying shit but it was a cool name)  
Landyn (A real and true friend, a really well known and powerful person)  
Alihvan (It's a variance of one of the names found there)  
Aerie (Anyone who's played Baldur's Gate 2 knows of this character. She's the avariel you can get to join you, and who you can fuck and impregnate.)  
Karie (My daughter on AR, kinda, I had a character (Iluvatar) who got married, had sex, and Karie became our daughter, don't ask, it's weird)  
Alysa (A goddess on AR)  
Thraknor (Last name of Arthain)

Alright, Riho and Cain came from Nightwalker (they were both vampires in it) while Vil'Tani, Aoria, Horial and Eyan were completely my own thought up names. Horial's real name is Alicia (in the story) well I took her description from a real girl… Alicia… well basically the name of the girl I loved in real life. Trying to get over her because she's just bad news (she also hurt me very badly).

Anyways this is me signing out! Geoff: AKA Arthain Thraknor.


End file.

Dragon Ball Z, Adventure, Romance